


Oathkeeper

by forsakenoathkeeper



Series: Breathe Into Me [1]
Category: Diabolik Lovers
Genre: Blood Drinking, Blood and Gore, Explicit Language, Explicit Sexual Content, F/M, Original Character(s), Rape/Non-con Elements, Sacrifice, Sex, Vampires, Violence
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-12-10
Updated: 2019-01-16
Packaged: 2019-09-15 07:57:23
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 13
Words: 36,083
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16929426
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/forsakenoathkeeper/pseuds/forsakenoathkeeper
Summary: In the late summer approaching her last year of high school, Sora Yasutake is sent away to what she anticipates will be a temporary living arrangement and a new private school. Quickly, she learns that is not the case. What awaits her begins as a nightmare, and turns into a dream, that changes her life forever.* Please be wary of adult content, including explicit sexual content, acts of violence, description of gore and blood, use of foul language, descriptions of abuse, trauma, dark romance, shaming, potential non-con, and other sensitive materials! *





	1. And Then I Met Him

**Author's Note:**

> This is Sora-chan from tumblr! I decided to place my fanfictions on AO3, as well, because of Tumblr's recent decision to no longer be a sex positive platform. You can also find me on twitter. Thank you for reading my erotica. Please be wary that I do write as close to the original nature of Diabolik Lovers as I possibly can. As such, these erotica pieces are often dark, obscene, and explicit. I hope you enjoy.
> 
> This story-line is the beginning of my OC's story.

[To be honest, for the first hour, I just sat there and stared at the wall. I had set my suitcase on the edge of the bed. Eventually, gravity tugged it far enough and it slipped onto the floor with a ‘thump’, rolling over so the wheels were exposed. Even so, I sat still, mind in a daze and body unmoving. My mother… Did she know? Would she care…? I imagined she would, at least a little bit. We were never close, but-… I stopped myself in that moment, realizing how irrational it was to dwell on it.]

[Last week, I was informed I would be living somewhere new, the circumstances quite odd. At the time, very little information was given, and I still don’t have a damn clue why I’m here… Well… Sort of… Anyway, for the first time in my life, I rode in a limousine, which took me hours and hours from my home, to a city I had never heard of. I was dropped off at a mansion – the kind you see in paintings from Europe. Honestly, I was under the impression I being pranked. This sort of thing doesn’t happen to real people. Once it all came together… hell, it still could be a really sick prank…]

[It was towards the end of the summer when I arrived at the Sakamaki household. I should be starting my third year of high school in less than a month. Now that I’m living here, I’m not sure what to expect anymore. To be dropped off at a mansion so abruptly… I can’t even begin to explain how lost I felt knocking on that front door. After nearly being attacked by a red haired boy, someone tall, with dark hair and glasses, came in to stop him. He quickly made a comment that we were being ‘noisy’. I’m sure me screaming and red hair shouting was very noisy… What were their names…? Ah, Ayato and Reiji, right…?]

[After sitting me down to talk, Reiji explained my purpose here. Every so often, suitable girls are dropped off here to be… their food. ‘Food’… I think I was so shocked that, for a moment, my mind didn’t even process that word. I was silent and tried to take in every bit of information he shared with me. It was difficult. Reiji was… intimidating, to say the least. His tone was enough to rattle my spine. It didn’t help that Ayato was breathing down my neck like some sort of rabid dog. Only then did it finally click…]

[I never bought into fairy tales. I find them fun for the sake of entertainment; but, never did I once believe… Yet, here I was; and, sure enough, as they spoke, I could see the very tips of pearly white fangs. Occasionally, their eyes caught the light in an abnormal way… After it became obvious to me, what they were, it was impossible to ignore it… I don’t want to admit it; but, I’m scared. I don’t know what I’m supposed to…. Why am I here? I don’t belong here…]

[Reiji took me to my room after that and told me the rules of the house and to not forget my place amongst them. Tomorrow evening, I would be expected to choose one of them to be my caretaker – well, I think he said ‘master’; but, I just can’t say that… I feel so… Ugh… Like, butterflies in the stomach while trying not to feel too dizzy – I feel as though I might faint, but my stomach hurts too much to allow me any peace… It didn’t help that he added on “if we let you choose, you’ll live longer”. Do I want to make sense of that…? Hell no… He said there were six of them… Six vampires… and me… That’s…]

[My mind nearly shut down, until I found the courage to leave the room… I know, I know, how silly… But, I couldn’t just sit there any longer or my stomach was going to empty… Maybe, someday, I’ll be thankful for that decision, because… Well, after I left my room, I met him… Heh. What do I even say about him…? He’s…]

As she slowly walked down the stairs, that voice in the back of her mind nagged on about how unwise this was. Assuming that the others were as frightening as the two she already encountered, wandering around could be disastrous; however, Sora felt that she was descending into madness in that unfamiliar room. Maybe it was simply in her nature to wander around and try to find peace elsewhere. She slowly descended the spiral staircase and wandered aimlessly down the hall.

Never in her life had she been in a place like this. It was beyond a normal Japanese home – it was more than that. The place was not even a modern home. It was a grand, Victorian mansion. Everything was made out of wood, stone, marble, or something clearly not plaster. Ancient paintings and furniture that looked expensive than the home she grew up in were scattered about perfectly.

She almost wondered if the place wasn’t even connected to normal electricity. It was dead silent, as though it was completely sound, that not a single breeze could float in. Most of the light sources that she had seen were carefully arranged candles or gas lanterns. The chandelier in the grand foyer was the only thing that seemed to be powered; and, yet, even that felt abnormal. Nothing here felt right. Wandering around, Sora couldn’t help but feel an uneasy air floating about. It could have simply been that it was difficult to breathe. There was definitely no circulating air, and the place was freezing.

For a little while, she felt silly for leaving her room. There was no door that she felt comfortable opening. Any one of those doors could lead something horrible. This wasn’t her home – well… not exactly. She was going to be living here; but, nothing felt right. She was completely out of her element, for the most part.

As Sora wandered down the farther end of the mansion, she noticed a door was partially open. An odd light was shimmering against the wood and she immediately recognized that bizarre pattern. It was a sort of blue haze that casted an odd, circular pattern against the door. She had a strong feeling she knew exactly what was behind that door. Suddenly excited, Sora trotted over and peaked in. Sure enough, as she glanced through the partially opened door, she could see the bright, shiny waters of a swimming pool. It was lit up from beneath the surface, illuminating the room in bright blue.

Not wanting to push the door open any further, Sora maneuvered in through the tight space and slid into the room silently. Her sneakers might quiet tapping sounds on the tiles. A swimming pool… That was familiar. It would be something she could use to keep herself busy. Packing her swimsuit proved to be useful, after all. Sora approached the pool and stood at the edge, staring happily into the water. It might have been minor; but, at least something positive could-…

“Huh?” Sora mumbled, her thoughts evaporating when her eyes caught the sight of something beneath the water. It took her vision a moment to adjust; then, suddenly, she realized, it was a body. Instinct kicked in and her body moved on its own. Sora quickly rose to her feet and dived into the water. Even with her clothes weighing her down, she got to the bottom quickly and grabbed hold of the unmoving figure.

He was heavy, but she managed to pull him to the surface. Gasping, Sora quickly surfaced the man’s head and leaned him against her chest. “Hold on!” she blurted out thoughtlessly. He was completely still and, from what she could tell, not breathing. Kicking her feet, she swam and dragged him towards the steps on the far end of the pool and hauled him onto the tiles. Gently, she set him down and quickly got on her knees beside him.

At the time, she didn’t think about who he could be, only that he was just drowning. She pressed her ear against his chest and noticed the very faintest murmur of his heart. His chest wasn’t moving and his lungs seemed completely lifeless; in fact, the stillness made her question of his heartbeat was fabricated. “No no no. He needs to go to the hos-” Sora’s panicked words cut off when the lifeless body began to groan.

“The music stopped…” Her brown orbs darted to the man’s face. His eyelids fluttered open, droplets of water catching on his thick lashes. His blonde locks were soaked; they curled around his face, clinging to his cheeks and forehead. His blue orbs looked over to her with a very exhausted expression. For a moment, Sora’s thought process completely snapped.

“Who are you? …Why are you bothering me?” he mumbled. The man, completely soaked with pool water and looking like a corpse, hardly moved. Aside from his mouth and eyes, everything remained completely still. For a moment, Sora was silent, pondering if she was dreaming.

“I… thought… you were drowning,” she mumbled, completely lost. “Is that what you thought…? That’s funny… I was sleeping peacefully before you interrupted. Hm… Oh, you must be another one. He did mention that, didn’t he…?” The stranger’s words trailed off and he closed his eyes for a moment. Sora simply stared, completely taken aback by the entire situation. Another one…? Oh, that’s right…

“Sleeping… beneath the water…?” she mumbled, eyes still locked on his face. “Are you just going to sit there and stare at me? Heh… Did you enjoy touching me that much?” the blonde haired male commented lowly, a small smirk appearing on his face, though his eyes remained closed. Sora’s eyes widened and her mouth fell open, not expecting such a remark from him. “What!? No…!”

“Oh? Then, why are you staring?” he retorted, opening his eyes again and looking at her. “Because you… You surprised me! Don’t you need to breathe?” she stammered back at him. “Vampires don’t have the same weak limitations as humans… Besides, what I do doesn’t concern you.” The blonde haired stranger lifted his hand and poked at his neck. It was only then that she realized the device he had wrapped around his neck.

“Don’t bother me again,” he threatened. After prodding at his music player a couple times with his finger, she could hear the humming of a violin coming from him. He reached around to where the earbuds had fallen out and tucked them back into his ears. He yawned loudly and then placed his hands on his abdomen. His eyes fluttered shut again and he appeared to be… sleeping?

Sora slid back away from the strange man and climbed onto her feet. She practically sprinted back to her bedroom and slammed the door behind her. She was thankful for the private bathroom attached to her room, for it allowed her to change into something dry. She simply couldn’t wrap her head around it. Falling asleep and sinking into the water…? That was… madness! …

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

[As promised, the next evening, Reiji had gathered all of us in the living room. It was then that I was properly introduced to everyone. The stranger I had encountered at the swimming pool was introduced as the oldest of the brothers, Shuu. He was sitting on a couch in the back; and, I was honestly convinced he had fallen asleep. Next came… Reiji, the second son… and I was introduced to Ayato and his triplet brothers, Laito and Kanato… In fact, Ayato’s doppelganger had licked me the second I sat down…! You know what, no, I’m not even going to explain that…! The youngest, Subaru, was leaning against the wall, arms crossed and eyes hidden behind his silver locks. Introductions went by quickly and then… They all stared at me, awaiting an answer…]

[I guess I should be thankful for getting to choose, right…?]

[He looked so uninterested in the whole situation… I mean, he couldn’t be that difficult to handle, right…? He was practically killing himself in the pool. I mean… Well, I… I’m not sure what to say. It just felt right. Maybe, I thought, at the time, it would be easy. He seemed normal… As normal as it gets, I guess… I just blurted his name… Shuu… He expressed his annoyance with a sigh; although, that sigh was followed by an utterance that I’ll never forget… “I won’t refuse food that has fallen into my lap…” … hah…]

[This is my life now… This madness… as a vampire’s bait… ... I fear-... I wonder... why...]


	2. The Lazy Vampire

[I didn’t ask to be sent here. I was never given a choice or options or even informed of the fate that had been chosen for me. Rather suddenly, I was thrown into this world – a world I was certain I didn’t belong in. I mean… why me? Why the hell did it have to be me? Did I do something that set me on this course? Was it random? I was lost… completely.]

[I made my choice on which boy to feed, so to speak. The thought still makes me cringe… Despite that, I’m hoping I can leave this place. Maybe, after a while, they’ll grow tired of me and I can go home? This entire experience has exhausted me. I have plenty of notebooks and pens, at least, to keep me occupied. I fear that I will run out.]

[I tried to stay near Shuu as often as possible, at least when I was outside of my bedroom. Something I quickly realized was that Shuu was not only a quiet person, he often resembled a corpse. Wherever we were, he simply laid there, flat on his back with his earbuds in. Even his breathing was practically nonexistent. I suppose that was why he sunk to the bottom of the pool and failed to notice…]

[Most of the time, we sat together in the living room. A couple times, I caught him floating on his back in the pool area, which seemed to explain how he sunk. I tripped over him in the hallway once. Why the hell was sleeping there is beyond me. He didn’t even notice or make a sound! I haven’t gone outside yet; I think I’m a little nervous about it… If there was one thing Reiji made painfully clear - “If you attempt to flee, we will catch you and punish you.” Call me what you must, but I definitely don’t want to experience that.]

[I don’t see his brothers too often; however, in those brief rendezvous, I quickly learned that Shuu was different. Shuu possessed a complete lackluster view of the world. It was like nothing I had ever seen before. Honestly, I’m amazed he is still alive… But, there was more than that. His other brothers seemed eager to take me from him - which is scary enough as it is… and Shuu… how do I…]

Shuu was lounging on the couch, a place Sora had recognized as one of his favorite napping spots. In fact, she was certain there was a permanent imprint of his body shape in the cushions. His heels were propped up on the edge of the couch, digging into the fabric. Sora sat at one of the armchairs opposite the couch. She was arched over with her notebook on her lap and pencil clutched in her hand. She had been working on a story for months and found that burying herself in it made this ordeal more livable.

Her eyes would occasionally glance up at Shuu, who had not moved a centimeter in well over an hour. At some point, when she looked up, his eyes were open and he was staring at her. She failed to prevent herself from flinching beneath that sapphire gaze. “You’re making a weird face,” he commented, a bit randomly. Sora stared back at him, absolutely clueless as to what she was supposed to say to that. For the first time in the three days that she had been here, Shuu finally said something lively to her and even made proper eye contact.

“Um,” she stuttered, completely clueless as to what to say to such a remark. She didn’t get another opportunity to speak before Shuu commented, lowly, “it’s annoying that you sit there and stare at me. Go bother someone else… Obviously my brothers are itching to taste you; so, go feed them. You could probably use your body to get what you want out of them – but not me…”

“Use my body…? Who the hell does he think I am? I would never…” Sora thought to herself, staring intently at the blonde vampire. Shuu closed his eyes and turned onto his side, his back facing the girl. “I chose you, and I haven’t changed my mind,” she proudly proclaimed, glaring intensely at the back of his head.

“Huh? Still? Whatever…” Shuu commented quietly. His words trailed off and he went silent again. Sora returned to her notebook, trying to keep herself busy with words and sentences, concepts and whatnot. Occasionally, she glanced up at Shuu, wondering what was going through his mind.

[Unlike his brothers, Shuu didn’t seem interested in drinking my blood. Honestly, it felt as though I had made the best decision possible. I chose the vampire who didn’t give a shit about what I did. He barely looked at me, let alone try to touch me. I imagined I would be safe and maybe, eventually, try to leave this place.]

[Later that same evening, after Shuu tried to get rid of me, he scared the living daylights out of me…]

“If I had my phone, I could use the thesaurus,” Sora muttered sourly to herself. They had taken it from her, obviously so she couldn’t call the police. After all, this was basically kidnapping that she was simply trying to endure. She had not anticipated how badly she would miss the use of something so simple.

“What’s that?” a voice suddenly muttered. Said voice was so close, Sora could almost feel the person’s breath on her ear. She flinched violently and let out a startled yelp. The person backed up and she quickly rotated her upper half in her chair and turned around to face the intruder; of course, it was her caretaker. One of his hands lifted and tenderly massaged at ear. “That was an annoying sound… You’re making that dumb face again,” Shuu commented casually.

“How did you – I didn’t hear you open the door. You scared me!” Sora blurted out, her cheeks reddening from the frustration. “Is that some sort of vampire thing?” she mentally pondered. She didn’t hear a single sound; he just suddenly appeared. Then again, she could have simply been so concentrated on her workbook that she failed to hear him enter.

“I’m supposed to tell you we have school tomorrow,” Shuu commented tiredly as he turned away from Sora and wandered over to her bed. She watched him casually plop down and sprawl out on the sheets. “You’ll be going, too,” he added on with a yawn.

“Oh. Okay,” Sora replied. She was a little surprised, but never the less grateful. She only had a few years left of high school and needed to finish in order to go to college; besides, having been living with vampires, going to school sounded like a nice distraction. She was steadily getting accustomed to sleeping during the day. It was a little odd, but to be expected, it seemed; they were vampires, after all.

After he laid down on her bed, Sora stood up and walked over to the bedside. His eyes were closed and his hands were rested on his abdomen. As usual, his earbuds were in. It was too quiet for her to hear, however. “Shuu… what are you doing?” she asked him. She stared down at the vampire, a bit baffled by his sudden actions. He plainly replied, “I’m sleepy.” Sora’s brow lifted curiously. “Then, sleep in your room,” she replied, trying to bite back a scowl.

“It’s dirty,” Shuu plainly answered. He shifted slightly, his eyes still closed, until he was more comfortable. “Then, clean it,” Sora retorted, crossing her arms over her chest. “It’s troublesome. You can do it,” Shuu tossed back. “I’m not cleaning your room for you,” she calmly snapped back at the blonde haired vampire.

The pureblood didn’t respond with words, but grunted quietly. Sora watched him for a moment before walking away from the bed with a scowl. She returned to her desk and angrily gripped her pencil. “Is he really going to sleep in here…?” she thought to herself, turning her head back to glance at him. He sure looked like he was sleeping.

After shaking her head, Sora tried to refocus on her notebook. The room was mostly silent, aside from the sounds of her pencil rapidly running across the paper. After a while, she became so focused that she forgot Shuu was in there and started muttering to herself.

“It’s not over yet, he proclaimed, roughly yanking on his sword until it separated from the battered corpse. He pointed the edge of the blade towards his enemy, panting heavily. His chest and shoulders lifted and fell with his rough breaths-”

“You talk a lot,” Shuu suddenly muttered. Sora froze up, suddenly going silent. Her pencil flung from her hand and clattered to the floor. She bent over to retrieve it and, as she came back up, she tilted her head to glance at Shuu. His eyes were closed, but he continued, “what are you talking about?”

Hesitantly, she replied, “It’s something I’m writing.” Shuu went silent again and, as such, Sora returned to her writing. An hour had passed and she glanced at the clock on the wall. She stretched her arms up above her head and arched her back, making an odd sound as she did so. She stood up and walked over to the dresser. She was about to pull out some clothes to bring with her to the shower; however, just as she pulled the drawer open, she remembered she wasn’t alone.

“Um,” she stuttered. Sliding the drawer shut, Sora walked over to the bed and looked down at the vampire sleeping in her bed. “He usually looks so intimidating,” she thought to herself. “Hehe. He looks so innocent now. How odd…”

Sora hesitantly reached for Shuu. She was about to touch his shoulder in an attempt to wake him, but quickly changed her mind and retracted her arm. “Hey, Shuu, can you leave?” she asked, eyes locked on his closed lids. “Shuu,” she tried again, a little louder, when he didn’t respond. “I want to shower. Please leave…”

“Maybe he can’t hear me because of those,” she whispered to herself, reaching for his nearest earbud. She carefully plucked the device from Shuu’s ear and spoke to him again. “Shuu, please leave. I want to shower and get to bed.”

The pureblood slowly opened his eyes and looked up at her. “What does that have to do with me? Are you inviting me to the shower?” he commented quietly. For a moment, Sora’s mouth hung open in disbelief. “What made you think that!?” she quickly snapped in shock. “I just want privacy! That’s why I’m asking you to leave…!”

“This is our mansion; so, I can go and sleep wherever he want,” Shuu replied plainly, his blue orbs locked on her brown ones. Sora sourily thought to herself, “then, let me leave and you can sleep in here all you want….” Shuu’s eyes flickered to the earbud that was still in Sora’s grasp. “Why’d you pull my earbud out? I could still hear you… you were spoiling the music with that annoying voice of yours.”

Sora frowned at him. So, then, he could hear her and simply chose not to listen? The human knelt down by the bed. He had earbuds in every second that they were together; she never saw him without them, even when he sunk to the bottom of the pool. She couldn’t deny she was curious. “Can I listen?” she asked. Shuu simply stared back at her; so, Sora took it as his approval. She carefully slid the bud into her ear.

She wasn’t quite sure what kind of music she was expecting; however, what she heard was definitely not expected. “Ahhh – harder!” echoed loudly in her ear, clearly the sound of a woman tossed about in the throws of ecstasy. Sora quickly tugged the bud out of her ear and tossed it back to Shuu.

“You’re listening to porn in my bed!?” she squawked at him. Sora quickly stood back up and stepped away from the bed. Shuu was smirking, amused by the horrified expression she was making. “No music is as pleasant as a pleasured woman,” Shuu explained before tucking the bud back into his ear. He closed his eyes and seemed to fall back into whatever oblivion he was in.

[I gave up on trying to kick him out literally right then and there. I was speechless. I mean… it’s not that I care…! But… he was doing that in my bed! “Music”… whatever…. Speaking of which, why did he invite himself into my room? It was bizarre… He seemed rather amused by my shock - probably gets off on scaring people…. Gyah!]

[Taking a shower with an unpredictable boy right outside the door was a little scary; however, when I exited, completely dressed, Shuu was gone. I turned off the lights, not heavily bothered by the faint light that shined in through the window. It wasn’t too hard to adjust and start sleeping during the day. Maybe I was just meant for it.]

[I probably would have slept better; however, my bed smelt like Shuu. No matter where I rolled, I could smell him. It was embarrassing and felt like some sort of curse. Maybe he did this just to annoy me…]

[Not once in my life had I been so excited for school like I was today. Maybe it would give me a sense of belonging and, hopefully, bring me some peace of mind and sanity.]


	3. First Day of School

[Not once in my life have I ever worn a school uniform like this. It’s actually a little uncomfortable. Of course, I wouldn’t dare complain about it in a time like this. Reiji had come knocking on my door early that evening, ensuring I was ready to go. He gave me a shoulder bag and some books, along with my school schedule. It was rather unpleasant, honestly. It seemed to only further bury me in this situation. I really was their helpless victim.]

[Before I stepped out the front door, I was promptly reminded, by Ayato, what would happen if I tried to escape. His amused expression was very unfriendly. He looked like he was excited by the thought of me trying to flee, just so he could tear me open. I didn’t say a word – there was literally nothing I could think of that sounded even remotely sincere. “I won’t run away,” was an option; but, I don’t know yet if I mean that. None of my emotions lately seem sincere. How else am I supposed to feel?]

[Today was also the first day I ever rode in a limousine. It was huge on the inside! -with cushioned seats and fancy little tables that had glasses and drinks. After climbing inside, I quickly sat down next to Shuu. It seemed only natural to do so. He was leaning back with his legs and arms crossed, looking like he was half-asleep, or possibly completely knocked out. I could hear the violin music pouring out of his earbuds.]

“Oi, Chichinashi,” Ayato barked, the nickname catching Sora offguard. She didn’t immediately look right at him, sort of glancing awkwardly in his direction to see if he really was referring to her. His green eyes were focused firmly on hers, which seemed to indicate, rather clearly, that he was talking to her. Reiji was the last one to get into the limousine. As soon as the door closed, the car started moving.

“You know who you picked, right? The one who barely breathes on his own! Haha,” Ayato sneered, making Sora want to disappear into her seat. She had placed her book bag on her lap and tried to stare into one of the darkened windows, rather than stare directly at one of the boys. This was the second time she had been with all of them at once. Truth be told, it was a little scary. The triplets were eyeing her oddly while the other three seemed completely uncaring of her existence.

“Ne, Bitch-chan,” Laito cooed. He was seated beside her, though there was some distance between them. He slid in closer, making that distance disappear immediately. “If Shuu fails to satisfy you, you know you can always come to me, right?” he offered, his tone a bit low, like a harsh whisper, and clearly seductive. Sora slid back, trying to back away from his advances, but merely bumped into Shuu, who was completely silent and unmoving.

“No thanks, Laito,” she gently retorted. The fedora-wearing vampire pulled back, though his smile was still present. “Nfu. So be it. I know you’ll change your mind. You look so helpless right now. It’s so cute.” His words only managed to make her feel less comfortable, especially seeing as she knew he was telling the truth – she likely looked as helpless as she felt.

“Don’t be so hasty there, hentai,” Ayato quickly barked, his fangs bared at his younger brother. “Yeah. Since when do you get the right to sample the new prey,” Kanato also tossed in. It was at this point that Reiji finally involved himself in the conversation. Rather loudly, he cleared his throat, before commenting, “honestly, the three of you are putting on a very pathetic display. She has only been here three days, and you’re already behaving like wild animals.”

Reiji paused for a brief moment while the triplets calmed down, though it looked as though they were searing in their seats. Reiji’s dark eyes fell upon Shuu and he promptly added, “that goes for the deadbeat, as well. He’s too occupied to even put in any effort to defend his food. It’s a pathetic display. I imagine you will come to your senses sooner or later.”

That last sentence made Sora direct her gaze away from Reiji and to Shuu. She stared at him for a moment, almost helplessly. She knew Reiji was referring to her decision. Come to her senses? About what? His words made no sense to her. What was wrong with Shuu?

[Needless to say, when we finally arrived at school, I was the first one out. I practically flew out of the limousine and almost ran to the entrance of the school. It was a little awkward, actually. I yanked my schedule out of my bag and hastily tried to find my first class. At least, this way, I could have a teeny bit of familiarity – some sort of peace of mind at this massive school. But… I realized… it was hard to find where to start.]

[It was a three story building, with several branching buildings to make matters worse. It didn’t help that I could not locate a single student council member to assist me. Being the first day of school, it seemed that everyone was in a blind haste. Students were swarming the hallways, though most of them were in groups, conversing about random things. I basically wandered around aimlessly, hoping I wouldn’t run out of time to figure out where I was supposed to go.]

[I guess I should have known better… Just when I thought I had enough vampire problems…]

“She definitely came from their household. She wreaks of them,” someone commented, his voice resonating in her ears. Sora stopped in her tracks, doubting, for a moment, that the person in question was even speaking about her. Just as she started to walk again, thinking that it was simply her ears failing her, someone trotted in front of her, cheering directly into her face, “don’t be rude, M-Neko-chan!” She nearly collided with the blonde haired boy, but managed to stop just in time. As Sora stepped back, she collided with another male, though didn’t immediately turn to face him.

“N-neko?” she blurted, finding the nickname rather absurd. Seeing as the halls were so crowded, she could not simply slide out of the way and try to maneuver around this blonde. Either way, another, who was clearly an accomplice, came into view. His steel blue orbs were narrowed at her in a frightening manner. “You’re their next sacrifice, then? Answer promptly,” he gently demanded.

Sora stared back at the dark haired male, feeling her face heat up as embarrassment washed over her. Who was this guy? How could he possibly know such a thing? Her mind raced with questions as the male stared her down, clearly demanding an answer. “Hahhh!? What is the answer, sow?” a loud voice echoed in her ear, making her spin around. The person she had bumped into was sneering at her, his neck craned down as he was so tall he towered over her.

As she inched away from the tall male, in the corner of her eye, she saw the blonde haired boy bolt away, cooing about something that was lost in the noise of the crowd. “Why do you wanna know?” she dared to question the larger male, though her tone didn’t exactly express her confidence. “Who are you?” she questioned again.

The dark haired male, now standing behind her, sighed quietly, though she definitely could hear it. “A meddlesome prey; but, you’re right, I have not yet introduced myself. I am Mukami, Ruki.” Sora turned her head back to the male behind her, catching his gaze for a brief second before the larger male mumbled, “Yuma”, making her look back at him. She stepped away from them until she collided with another student, and was forced to stop. Whoever they were, they knew of her situation, which did not prove to be comforting; rather, it only seemed to make them terrifying. As her mind raced, she realized, Ruki had called her ‘prey’.

“…more vampires, huh…?” she mumbled to herself. Yuma smirked at her, towering over her with little care. “Idiot, took you long enough,” he scolded her, his tone rough yet oddly playful in a rather unpleasant way. Ruki directed his eyes away from her, just in time for a familiar voice to ask, “what are you doing?” Sora’s eyes flickered away from the tall vampire to see Shuu standing there, staring at her with half-lidded eyes. His blue eyes flickered from hers and back and forth between the other two vampires.

“Geez, you’re alone for a minute and already in another’s clutches,” he commented loosely, rubbing the back of his neck tiredly. Sora grinded her teeth, resisting the urge to defend herself out of the assumption that it would have been pointless. Yuma’s boisterous laughter was almost loud enough to echo down the hallway. “Ahhh, that’s your master, huh? That’s hilarious! Whatever - I’m out…” With such gracious parting words, Yuma tucked his hands into his pockets and walked away.

“The eldest son… Very well,” Ruki muttered, almost like he was speaking to himself. He too made his departure, gently pushing his way through the crowd. “Shuu - um,” Sora mumbled, only to be interrupted by the blonde-haired vampire. “Don’t think that you matter - but, if you died too quickly, it would only cause me trouble. Don’t be such a pain,” he scolded her in a gruff tone. Uncertain of what to say to such a remark, Sora looked away from Shuu and stared blindly into the crowd.

The bell rang, signaling it was time for first period to start. When she looked back, Shuu had disappeared into the crowd. Hoping that she was accurate on the location for her first class, Sora gently shoved her way through the crowd.

[Oddly enough, once my classes started, I felt a little relaxed. Shuu’s family and the strangers I met today were still sitting in the back of my mind; yet, at least, school gave me enough of a distraction to concentrate, just a little bit. I had not felt this peaceful in days, since I arrived at the mansion. Rather quickly, the day had come to an end and I was heading for the limousine.]

"Oh, you’re alone,” Reiji commented loosely when Sora approached him. She quirked her eyebrow at him. He was standing outside of the limousine, his arms crossed loosely over his chest. “I anticipated that you would bring the deadbeat with you; but, it seems I was wrong,” he explained, narrowing his gaze at her.

“Shuu’s not with here yet?” she questioned, not so much out of expecting an answer from the vampire, but simply speaking out of habit. “No matter, he can sleep here,” Reiji sneered. Leaving Shuu here didn’t sound very ideal to Sora, even though Reiji seemed to find the idea delightful. Quickly, she sputtered, “I’ll go get him! Do you know where he his?”

Reiji glared at the human, groaning quietly. “Why would I know such a thing? I don’t keep tabs on his whereabouts. He isn’t a child.” Sora didn’t dwell too much on Reiji’s words. It was strange, but leaving Shuu behind was something she couldn’t allow. Reiji was correct: Shuu wasn’t a child; but, still, it could have been an honest mistake that he was late. “Please wait, Reiji, I’ll be back,” Sora requested before spinning on her heels and trotting back to the school, ignoring Reiji’s protects as she departed.

She wandered the hallway helplessly, likely anticipating that she would catch Shuu walking lazily and possibly grab him to make him move faster; yet, no matter which way she wandered, she couldn’t find him. She peeked into the open doors of empty classrooms, wondering if he was talking to a teacher. Still, she couldn’t find him.

As she walked down the hall, passing a couple students, she accidentally eavesdropped. “That Sakamaki guy is sleeping on the roof,” the one commented, catching Sora’s attention. “What? Really?” another student bickered back at the other. It seemed very likely that it was Shuu. There seemed to be no other Sakamaki that would do such a ridiculous thing. Sora quickly jogged over to the stairs and marched up to the third floor. She followed the signs that directed towards the roof, at the far end of the hallway.

Sure enough, when Sora got up onto the roof, there he was. Shuu was around the corner of the roof, his back pressed against the wall as he was propped up on the ground. For a moment, she just stared at him in disbelief, wondering how a person could possibly sleep like that. She knelt down beside the vampire and reached for him. Gently, she shook his shoulder, mumbling his name.

He didn’t move, at first; but, after a few more nudges, Shuu finally opened his eyes, and glared at her. “…what…?” he practically snarled, though his tone was too tired to sound menacing. “School’s over. It’s time to go home,” Sora replied, removing her hand from his shoulder. “I don’t care. I was having a great sleep until you ruined it with your presence,” he retorted, roughly. Sora pouted at the vampire, still knelt down in front of him, with her bag hanging off her side.

“Please, Shuu. Get up and walk with me to the limousine,” she gently pleaded, a bit perplexed by his statement. Sleep up here? He couldn’t be serious. He’d likely freeze to death! Even just now, standing up here, Sora felt like she was shivering. “Gnn,” Shuu groaned, his blue eyes fluttering for a moment. After his vision adjusted, he looked up at her properly. “Fine. I’ll get up, if you kiss me.”

Sora blinked slowly, staring at Shuu as though she misheard him. “…what?” she mumbled, not entirely thinking before the word slipped out of her mouth. “Ugh. What, you can’t hear? I won’t repeat myself…” Shuu’s words trailed off and he closed his eyes again, leaning back against the wall as though he planned on going back to sleep. “Shuu, that’s - … okay, fine, if you promise to get up?” she gave in, frowning deeply at him. “Hurry it up,” Shuu mumbled, his eyes still closed.

Sora leaned in and pecked a swift kiss against the vampire’s cheek. She pulled back and stared at him, expecting a reaction. For a moment, she stared as his closed eyelids, until they slowly fluttered open. As Shuu shifted, Sora quickly stumbled back to get out of his way. He rose to his feet, glaring at her. "That was the worst kiss I’ve ever had,” he commented tiredly before stalking out the door. For a moment, Sora stood there stupidly with her mouth hanging open. Once reality kicked in, her mouth clicked shut and she pouted, mumbling to herself, “…the feeling’s mutual…” She quickly sped up and ran to Shuu’s side to keep up with him, silently hoping Reiji did not drive away.

[He’s definitely the weirdest person I’ve ever met - making such a request and… his skin, I still recall, was cold as a block of ice. How strange that he wasn’t shivering like I was…]


	4. Two Unsettling Vampires

Sora had only attended a mere handful of schools in her short life; however, this academy was definitely the hardest she had ever attended. Every day was repetition: she went to school, was completely overwhelmed in her classes, and returned to the Sakamaki mansion to slave away at her homework assignments. The only valuable thing she could get out of it was that it kept her busy enough to ensure she didn’t have time to worry about her predicament. Living with vampires became an afterthought.

Friday morning rolled around and she scurried down the steps into the grand foyer of the mansion. Almost everyone was standing there, waiting for her arrival. Her brown orbs flickered from one pair to the next until she realized Shuu was not with them. “Are you done keeping us waiting?” Reiji questioned, tone rather apathetic. “This tardiness won’t be accepted. Rectify this behavior immediately, or I will take matters into my own hands.”

His threat somewhat caught Sora off-guard. She quickly nodded in understanding before asking the tall vampire, “um. Is Shuu already in the limo?” Sora blinked nervously when she saw Reiji’s red eyes narrow slightly and the inner corner of his brow twitch ever so slightly. “The filth can stay in his bedroom, out of the way,” Reiji almost snarled. Sora tried to brush off his angry tone, hastily commenting, “he can’t miss any more classes, though.”

“That’s not any of my concern, nor is it yours,” the dark haired vampire immediately snapped back at her. “Worrying about him is po-” Before Reiji could finish, Sora quickly barked, “just a moment!” She could hear the sounds of Reiji grunting in irritation, and calling out something to her, when she spun around and quickly departed, marching right back up the stairs. Deep down, she knew it wasn’t really her business; yet, maybe, in her choosing Shuu, it was more than just him being her keeper – maybe, it was best if she helped him, too. Besides, what if he was ill? He seemed to be the kind to always get himself into trouble, even if it was rather ludicrous.

Sora trotted down the hall until she reached the door that she was almost positive was Shuu’s. She knocked, before calling out, “Shuu! Hey, come on, it’s time for school! …Shuu?” She was only met with silence, which was not entirely surprising, though was troubling. She reached for the door handle and hesitated for a moment, her hand hovering above the copper, before she finally invited herself inside.

Upon walking into the room, Sora closed the door behind her before quickly setting her shoulder bag on the floor, letting it lean against the floor. In a way, his bedroom was what she expected, but also wasn’t. The polished wood floors and overall cleanliness of the room was not what she had envisioned. In honesty, she expected there to be piles of clothes and stacks of CD’s, like any other boy’s bedroom; however, as she slowly descended the short staircase, she remembered that this was a mansion and they had servants, even though she never saw them.

“Shuu, are you feeling okay?” she questioned as she approached his bedside. Shuu was wearing the exact same outfit she had caught him in yesterday. He was lounging on his bed, flat on his back with an arm behind his head, and the blanket just barely covering a single leg and some of his hip. “Geez, and I was worried something was wrong with you,” she thought to herself, biting back a scowl as she looked down at the sleeping vampire.

“Come on, Shuu. It’s time for school. I bet you’ve been sleeping for over twelve hours…” As she trailed off and was met with silence, Sora realized that Shuu’s MP3 player was silent. “Look, even your MP3 player ran out of juice…” The vampire didn’t reply, though Sora could see that his eyebrow twitched, leading her to suspect that he heard her. “Come on. You need to hurry up! Or Reiji will leave without us and I don’t know if there is another driver…”

“…so cold…” Shuu whispered, just barely moving his lips to utter those two words. Sora’s lip curled into a frown as she stared down at the pureblood. “Come on. Quit screwing around…” she dared to scold him, feeling a little bold as her irritation grew. Shuu’s eyelids slowly parted and his blue orbs looked up at her. “That face… Hahaha,” he commented before laughing quietly and breathlessly.

“My face?” Sora replied, unsure of what he meant, though she could tell he was mocking her. “Mhm. You look stupid when you look at me like that,” Shuu further explained, his eyes now more properly opened and looking intently into hers. Though she didn’t intend to, Sora fixated a small glare on Shuu, unable to keep herself from doing so. “I don’t – geez, Shuu. That’s mean. I’m trying to help-” Quickly, he cut her off when he leaned up and wrapped an arm around her mid-section.

“Gh!” Sora squeaked when he yanked her off her feet and she collapsed onto the bed, falling halfway on top of Shuu. Her other half was nuzzled on the bed, close to him. “If you’re insistent on helping; then, you can warm me up…” Shuu commented, his cold breath dancing over her cheeks. His fingers splayed over her lower back and tugged her in, until their bodies were pressed together. She could feel his chest, his abdomen, and even his crotch, all pressing against her. He was ice cold and firm. Her cheek slid against his shoulder and she panicked.

Sora didn’t think properly and simply shoved at him, trying to detach herself from the vampire. Shuu released her and she immediately rolled away and fell onto the floor. “Ah… that hurts…” she commented, mostly to herself as she rolled onto her side, now laying on the cold, hard floor. She could hear Shuu’s gentle cackling from up on the bed. She rolled away from the bed and quickly staggered to her feet.

“Such a spazz,” the vampire commented, his smile making her falter. Sora nearly tripped, but quickly grabbed the corner of the nearby side end table. She glared at him, more properly this time, before spitting out, “don’t do that! You… you scared me!” Shuu laughed once more, this time closing his eyes as he did so. “You wanted to help me, didn’t you? So, then, offer your body to me.” he retorted, smirking devilishly at her. “I’m not your -…” Sora trailed off, realizing that where she was going was pointless. “Please just hurry up and get dressed!” she quickly sputtered out before making a swift exit, knowing that if she stayed, he would have only continued to taunt her.

[ I don’t know how to respond to his advances. He refers to me as his prey, and even the others seem to acknowledge this, though Shuu has yet to… drink my blood. It’s like a game to him. I can see how he takes great amusement in my reactions. He was so close… It was intimidating; but, I learned something new about Shuu. His body was freezing cold and his hand… was almost unreal. He really isn’t human… To think… Did I really doubt that all this time? ]

“Geez… Shuu is going to be the death of me,” Sora thought to herself as she walked along, her lunch still resting in her bag. Reiji had given her the freedom to use the kitchen, which proved to be easy since it was almost always unoccupied; so, she was free to make whatever she could to bring to school as a lunch. The only person she ever ran into was Kanato, who would be perched at the dining table with his companion sitting next to him. Sora always avoided Kanato’s gaze, mainly because he frightened her. He always paid her little attention when she cooked and simply talked lively with his stuffed friend, whom she came to know as “Teddy”. It was bizarre; but, who was she to judge?

“Sow!” a voice bellowed, immediately crashing her train of thought. Sora flinched at the intrusion, the sheer volume of the stranger startling her. “Did I scare ya’?” someone questioned, a voice that she immediately recognized. Slowly, Sora turned her head back, undoubtedly expressing absolute dread. “Oi. Stop making such a terrible face. Am I that scary? Ha!” the vampire bellowed, nudging her with his shoulder as he walked by. How relaxed he was did little to calm her down. Just the other day, he and his pals had ambushed her.

“What’s up with you?” Yuma asked, pausing for a moment to turn and face her. “U-um…” Sora stuttered, not quite sure how to reply to the vampire. In fact, it was unlikely that she even heard his question, being too flabbergasted to think straight. “Geez, hurry up and answer, sow!” Yuma barked at her, leaning in close enough that he loomed over her in an intimidating fashion. Out of instinct, Sora flinched and backed away, directing her gaze away from him for a moment.

“Fine! I’m… fine…” she replied, quickly getting the nerve to finally look him in the eye. Everything about Yuma was intimidating. He was tall with wild eyes and she could swear that a tooth with sticking out of his mouth. Upon watching his mouth move as he spoke, she immediately became aware that it was a fang. When he stood close to her, she became even more aware of how much larger he was than her. His shoulders were so wide that his uniform jacket wouldn’t stay on right.

“Heh. Look. You’re aware of your situation, right?” Yuma questioned, still holding his ground. With the height difference, Sora was forced to crane her neck back to look up at him. “You stink like that neet; but, you’re still unmarked. Anyone can see that,” Yuma commented, turning his head slightly and letting a smirk grace his features. “I stink like-… oh. Because of this morning,” Sora thought to herself, tearing her gaze away from Yuma’s. “So, then, why continue living with a bunch of spoiled rich kids, huh? When you can live with me and my brothers; give your blood to me, instead.”

When those words finally processed in her mind, Sora’s brown orbs flickered back to Yuma’s lighter ones. He was staring intently, clearly expecting an answer from her. “No one is drinking my blood,” she retorted, not even pausing to comprehend what she was saying. In that moment, some stern fierceness that rested deep within her erupted. Her eyes narrowed and she glared at the large vampire. Was she really in a position to say such a thing? But, then… Shuu hadn’t… At the time, Sora wasn’t even thinking about that. Yuma’s proposition, oddly, annoyed her.

“Hah?” Yuma whaled. “You’re so certain of that? You’re a stupid prey. Maybe that’s for the best, then. Someone with such arrogance belongs with the aristocrats.” His tone was baffling. She could sense he was irritated, yet his tone was also mocking. Regardless, she wasn’t interested in falling into his trap. “I’m eating lunch, Yuma. Goodbye!” Sora quickly stammered before ducking under his arm and making a quick retreat. He didn’t follow, but simply turned and watched her retreat.

“That scent… The neet’s… Geez. Why… is it familiar? …tch,” Yuma growled to himself, eyes narrowing as he watched the measly prey flee down the hall. He shoved his hands into his pockets before walking the opposite way.

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“Ah! Ms. Yasutake, can you do me a favor, please?” the teacher asked, catching Sora’s attention. “Do you have time? I wouldn’t want you to miss your ride…” the teacher added on, aware that school would be ending soon. Sora turned her head rapidly, replying, “my ride won’t arrive for another twenty minutes. What did’ja need?”

“The music teacher had to go home early and asked me to return these to her classroom; but, I’m afraid I’m already running late for a meeting,” the teacher explained, showing Sora the box of unsorted items that was grasped between his hands. Sora glanced into the box and recognized the assortment of strings, tuners, and various cleaners. “I can do that,” she offered, taking the box from him. He stepped back and bowed, thanking her, “thank you so much – ah! –and, Room B, Ms. Yasutake!” before quickly trotting away.

Sora turned back down the hall and headed for the music room. She moved the box to her left arm, balancing it against her chest, so she could fiddle with the door handle; unfortunately, it was locked. “Damn… Um… Looks like Room A will have to do,” she thought to herself, redistributing the weight of the box again, now between both arms, and continuing down the hall. Thankfully, when she got to Room A and tested the doorknob, it opened.

“Let’s see…” Sora mumbled to herself as she set the box on the teacher’s desk. Luckily, she knew what everything was and sorted the materials and devices with ease, arranging them into the supplies cabinet rather quickly. As soon as she was done, Sora patted the sides of her skirt to brush the dust off, and began to depart. As she did so, her toe nudged against something and a very familiar grunt echoed in her ears. “…SHUU!?” she bellowed, looking down to find said vampire laying on the floor, flat on his back.

“Ouch… Here to interrupt my sleep again?” he questioned, opening one eye to look up at her. “You’re so annoying… and evil.” Sora pouted at Shuu, though the best response she had was, “you’re sleeping on the floor…” She bit her lip, resisting the urge to question whether or not he went to class at all; however, she knew that it wouldn’t have gotten anywhere.

Sighing heavily, Sora stepped back, though her brown orbs remained fixated on the pureblood, and she said to him, “come on. The limo will be here soon. We can go home and you can sleep wherever you want.” What followed was most certainly not what she had anticipated. “…carry me…” If it wasn’t for the fact that her jaw was attached, it might have slipped off, for Sora knew that her mouth was hanging open after hearing that. “Shuu, we both know I can’t pick you up,” she quickly replied, wondering what his ploy was.

“Then, I’ll just stay right here. I don’t feel like getting up…” Shuu trailed off, groaning quietly and his eyes fluttering shut. He wiggled around to get comfortable again, adjusting his jacket, which was folded beneath his head like a pillow. “You can’t sleep here over night. The walk to the limo isn’t that far,” Sora retorted, finding herself glaring at him, once again. “What a pain,” he commented, reaching for her. Sora flinched, attempting to avoid being captured; however, Shuu was quick, and had grabbed her wrist and yanked her down.

She crumbled to the floor, losing her bag in the process, and Shuu immediately climbed above her. Flat on her back, she stared up at him, eyes wide and lips parted. Blonde locks fell over the vampire’s face and he smirked, staring down at her wickedly. “Heh. You shut up real fast,” he commented, teasing her. Sora visibly flinched when she felt Shuu’s hand sliding along her hip, pushing up her blazer, vest, and button-up shirt until some skin became exposed.

“Hey! Don’t touch me like that!” she whined at Shuu, growling quietly and wiggling around beneath him. She mentally scolded herself for faltering, knowing that her voice wasn’t the least bit stern, making her sound quite pathetic. Sora’s hand clamped over Shuu’s wrist and she tried to tear him away; however, he was far too strong and she felt his fingertips brushing against her side. “Stop!” she screamed, feeling nervousness swell inside her as his hand slowly lifted. “I don’t want to,” Shuu gently retorted, whispering. Sora kept her gaze away from him, afraid to look, though she could feel his blue orbs staring.

“This isn’t funny! I’m not – Shuu, I’m not kidding! S-stop…” Pinned beneath his weight, Sora was helplessly but to wiggle around and try to pry his hand away. He continued to rise and she whimpered when his fingertips touched her ribs before just barely grazing the hem of her bra. Then, suddenly, he groaned with irritation and removed his hand. “…what a pain…” Shuu leaned up and then steadily rose to his feet, not even glancing down at her as he stood. As he retreated, she quickly fixed her clothes before sitting up to watch the door swing shut.

[ I grabbed Shuu’s jacket and followed him out into the hallway. Our eyes didn’t meet and not a single word was exchanged. It was awkward, but livable, I guess… The skin, where Shuu had touched me, was burning, despite the fact that his hand was ice cold. I don’t understand what he wants from me. He enjoys teasing me, but then he goes and takes it too far, and leaves me uncertain of anything. Is this… how a vampire treats their prey? Am I… to be toyed with, like a mouse between a cat’s paws, until..? Shuu is so… strange… ]


	5. An Appetizing Smell

[ It’s Sunday, which should be a good thing; but, since I live here, now, the weekends are troubling. Ayato and Subaru get into fights a lot, which normally wouldn’t be a problem; however, being vampires, their physical fights are rather terrifying. The whole house shakes and any furniture that stands in their way is completely obliterated. Most of the time, Shuu just goes outside when they’re fighting. Today, he didn’t budge from the couch and simply growled at them to shut up. The fact that they actually listened was even more shocking. But… Shuu is the oldest, isn’t he? So, maybe that’s not surprising… ]

Sora watched as Ayato and Subaru swiftly departed, likely heading back to their bedrooms. They took opposite staircases, marching away. At that point, she couldn’t even remember what they were fighting about in the first place. She turned to head to the kitchen, unaware that Reiji was standing right behind her. She smacked into him and immediately staggered back, sputtering an apology. Reiji hardly even recognized that she was standing there. His eyes were fixated on Shuu and he walked around Sora to approach the eldest.

“Honestly, how disgusting. Get your feet off the couch. This isn’t a barn,” Reiji harshly spat at Shuu, crossing his arms over his chest as he glared down at the blonde vampire. The vampire didn’t respond, nor even budge in the slightest. “Ignoring me? How original. It’s bad enough to taint the room with your presence, but you have to ruin the furniture, as well?” Sora could tell by Reiji’s manner of speaking that he wasn’t exactly talking to Shuu, but rather, through him. Either way, it was clear that the older son wasn’t even listening.

“Hmph… Well, I suppose the fastest way to rid oneself of trash is to self it ablaze,” Reiji commented, his dominant hand curling around his chin, as though he was contemplating the situation, likely developing a strategy to remove Shuu immediately. Perhaps, under other circumstances, Sora would have simply brushed it off, figuring it was simply the quarrel of two brothers; however, Reiji’s tone and the intensity in his glare frightened her.

“Hold on, Reiji! That’s a little much, isn’t it?” Sora sputtered, marching over to stand in the space between the couch and the coffee table, efficiently putting herself between Shuu and Reiji. “I’ll get him up,” Sora promised, her words expressing more confidence than she actually possessed. “What a waste of time. Your pitiful attempts won’t amuse me,” Reiji replied, staring at her intently. “I’m being serious. I’m not trying to… amuse you,” Sora retorted, as gently as she possibly could.

She turned her back on Reiji and dared to place her hands on Shuu’s shoulders. “Come on, Shuu. Wake up. You can’t sleep here.” She gently shook him, earning a few quiet, sleepy groans from the vampire. A little bit more nudging and he finally replied, tiredly whispering, “ah… You ruined my dream.” Rolling her eyes, Sora replied, “you’ll be fine… Come on. You need to sleep in your bedroom.” Shuu’s brow twitched, though he still didn’t bother looking up at her.

“Are you done? I’ve had enough of this,” Reiji scowled. Sora could practically feel his glare, burning holes through her back. Trying to ignore the bifocaled vampire, Sora continued to nudge at Shuu. “Shuu, get up, now… Come on. You can’t sleep in the living ro-” Cold hands lifted, groping at her sides and pulling. Sora squeaked in a rather undignified manner as Shuu pulled her down and she collapsed on the couch, right on top of him. Her arms and legs flailed about as he rolled her over and crushed her between the back of the couch and his chest.

“Gh – Shuu!” Sora whined, her voice muffled as her face fell into the bunched of fabric of his collar. Shuu hummed carelessly, though his keen ears picked up the sound of Reiji’s gasp. The dark haired vampire glared down at the two of them, his lips curled into a scowl and brow twitching. “This is the living room – a public room for all of us. What do you think you’re doing!?” he snarled. Shuu ignored his younger brother, choosing to nuzzle more comfortably against his new body pillow.

Sora pushed against his shoulders and chest, though she was helpless to break free, caught in his powerful grasp and fumbling against his cold body. “Shuu, let me go! I’m not-… hey…!” Her complaint died off briefly when Shuu’s dominant hand found her behind and squeezed. She jolted a little and wiggled some more, which only further amused the vampire. “You’re so noisy… Like a little squeaky toy,” he commented, eyes still closed, brow relaxed and mouth curled into a tiny smile, expressing his amusement.

“You continue to ignore me like a spoiled child!?” Reiji whaled, likely catching Shuu’s attention this time around, for his smile vanished. Sora blinked nervously, only able to catch Shuu’s face and a glimpse of Reiji over his shoulder. “You would dare touch a woman like that in front me? You’re as low as a horny dog,” Reiji snarled, tone low and voice dripping with venom. “Comparing you to a dog is unfair to their species. You’re more suitable as a worm in the ground,” the dark haired vampire carried on. “Disgust-”

Shuu spoke up, silencing his younger brother, “if you don’t want to see me, then leave. How about you live in the ground? Then, you’ll never have to see another person again.” A sound escaped Reiji, like a broken grunt, expressing his irritation and rage. “Returning my words? You’re as useless as ever,” he spat back, his fangs clenched together in his jaw. Not another word was spoken as he finally stomped away, leaving behind the slight echo of his shoes on the wood floor.

Sora went limp beside Shuu, as though she felt the sting of Reiji’s words more powerfully than the pureblood they were aimed at. “Shuu…?” she whispered. He didn’t say a word, but remained where he was, curled against her, nuzzled up on the couch. Sora glanced up at his peaceful expression, feeling helpless as she couldn’t break free and, in that moment, she was too scared to move. It was strange, but watching Ayato and Subaru’s physical fight was not nearly as frightening as watching Shuu and Reiji’s verbal one…

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[ Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday… The days were steadily flying by. How long have I been here…? Once Friday rolls around, it will be two weeks. School, I suppose, served as a good distraction. I still saw some of the boys there, including the other family, whom I came to know as the Mukami family. I really don’t know what to say… I suppose they don’t seem very different from the vampires I’m living with. ]

[ Yuma is loud and intimidating; but, at least his loudness means I can hear him coming. Azusa sneaks up on me, though he doesn’t seem to do it on purpose. Kou is… um… Can I just use his name as an adjective? …-and then, there’s Ruki. He scares me, honestly. Heh – but I wouldn’t whole heartedly admit that! He’s just… I don’t know. The way he looks me is scary. His eyes could slice you right open. It’s just so-… hm… ]

[ I wouldn’t say I know Shuu’s brothers much better, either. I try to avoid Reiji as best as I possibly can. He clearly despises me, or the thought of me. I’m not quite sure where the line begins or ends. Ayato often forgets I exist, unless my “smell” is disturbing him. He seems off-put by me, though I don’t know how to analyze such a thing… Laito is… I suppose I grew accustomed to his invitations. Now, I just ignore him. Sometimes, he laughs, other times… he gets agitated. Though, my “newness” is wearing off… Kanato and Subaru… I hardly ever see them, let along speak to them. I’m curious, but not enough to dare attempt interaction… ]

[ It’s a little silly. I’ve spoken the most with Shuu in the short time I have been here; however, our conversations are more like utterances: Shuu expressing his annoyance at my existence and I-… I don’t know what to do with him. I suppose I couldn’t deny… Shuu… I’m curious enough to dare to disturb him… ]

Sora walked through the gardens in the back of the mansion, her notebook clutched between her arm and the flesh of her hip. She had wound her way through the large gardens, taking the cobblestone path until it ran out and she reached the edge, where the grass fields faded. Most of the gardens and grounds that surrounded the mansion were left wide open, exposing the lush forests that surrounded them; however, this distant corner was fenced off, though Sora couldn’t explain why.

She wanted to take a seat outside, in a new place she had yet to venture. It sounded quite enjoyable, actually. Being outside gave her a new perspective and often encouraged a different mood, allowing her to achieve something new for a change. She hadn’t dared write a proper action scene since she arrived here. A daring sword fight with some blood shed sounded exciting!

As she walked along, Sora had a second notebook opened before her eyes. She flipped through the pages, trying to find a passage she wrote a few months ago. Neglectful to her surroundings, she failed to see the obstacle in front of her and toppled right over it. Hollering in an embarrassing manner, Sora crumbled to the floor, falling flat on her front.

“Ahh. Damn it,” she growled, glaring at the sight of blurred blades of grass in front of her eyes. Her legs were awkwardly stretched; however, that thought was long forgotten when she heard a familiar sound. “Gnn… You again…” Craning her neck in a very painful fashion, the human turned her head and looked over her shoulder. Sure enough, the person, whom she had feared, was sprawled out on the grass, his head propped up on an old, very short stump, one of his arms behind his head. His glare was menacing, but not entirely unexpected.

As quickly as she could, Sora rolled over and slid away from Shuu. How did he-… When did he-…. WHY!? Him sleeping out here wasn’t what was so shocking, but the fact that he was doing so in a place she had planned to go to… It had to be a coincidence, without a doubt; however, even the fact that such a thing happened…

“Just when I got comfortable… Ah. You’re such an annoying woman,” Shuu groaned, wiggling around a little until he was situated again. His eyelids fluttered shut and he groaned quietly. Not really thinking it through, a question sputtered from Sora’s mouth, “why are you sleeping outside, Shuu?” He was quiet for a moment, before quietly grunting his reply, “…the grass feels nice…”

Sora gathered her fallen notebook and the couple pencils that had slipped from where they rested against the outer rim of the notebook. She sat on the ground with her legs crossed and propped her notebook up on one of her legs, continuing her search through the pages. Her eyes kept wandering to Shuu, silently speculating as to how the vampire could sleep all day, every day. Thus far, every single time she stumbled upon him, he was asleep, or attempting to. That was how they met… What led her to pick him in the first place.

“Ne… Shuu?” Sora began, curiosity striking her. “Why do you sleep all the time?” Her brown orbs flickered back and forth between Shuu’s unmoving form and the scrambled words in her notebook. One page, then the next – she was half way through and still had not found what she was looking for. Eventually, Shuu replied, voice hoarse and uninterested, “don’t ask me pointless things.”

Sora caught herself rolling her eyes, though not out of irritation. Rather, his answer did not surprise her much. “Fine… you don’t have to tell me; but… well… even when Reiji makes dinner, you don’t eat. It’s troubling… I don’t think I’ve ever seen you eat.”

What followed Sora’s question was not entirely what she expected. Shuu chuckled, shifting slightly from his spot on the ground as his chest trembled. “Troubling? Hmph. If you’re so concerned, then feed me,” he retorted, tone in a teasing manner that she had heard before, when he became intrigued with the concept of tormenting her.

“Um… What do you want?” Sora asked, not entirely sure what point he was getting at. When she glanced at Shuu again, his eyes were open, blue orbs staring her down and immediately catching her gaze. “It’s obvious, isn’t it? I’m a vampire,” he began, spelling it out as though he expected her to make such a senseless reply. “So… Hehe. Your body might suffice.”

Blinking slowly, Sora gawked at the vampire, somewhat aware of what he was implying, and still, somewhat oblivious. He had a small smirk on his face and a devilish glimmer in his eye, which was sincere, though Sora mistook it for teasing. “I wish you would stop messing with me like that!” she shrieked at him, glaring at him in a not-so menacing way. “Messing…?” Shuu muttered back, his smirk vanishing immediately. Sora stared back at him for a moment, dead silent. Though she was embarrassed by his statement, she was also baffled.

[ After that, I couldn’t focus on writing, anymore. I gathered my things and made a quick retreat, leaving Shuu alone like he wanted. I think I know what he means, but-… Well, maybe I’m a little afraid of what the truth might be. Shuu’s always so eager to tease me… I never know what he’s thinking… ]

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“Miss Yasutake.”

Sora looked up from her book, eyes flickering to the figure that stood in front of her. She had finished her test early and was using her new spare time to read something she had checked out from the library. For a moment, she expected a scolding, considering the possibility that the teacher would tell her to spend her time more wisely; however, instead, he set some papers on her desk. Her brown orbs flickered down and immediately caught the sight of a familiar name.

“Please give these to Mr. Sakamaki. You probably don’t know that he is supposed to be in this class; but, he has never shown up. I understand that you’re living with his family…?” The teacher trailed off, giving Sora a chance to quickly butt in. “Yeah. I can give them to him. Um… I didn’t know he was supposed to be in here. I-… don’t know his class schedule.” Deciding to cut their awkward conversation short, the teacher briefly thanked her before returning to his desk.

“Living with him…?” a voice muttered from a few desks behind her. “So, it’s true then,” a different voice replied. “Why do you think she lives with them…?” Sora returned to the pages before her, trying to ignore the girls babbling behind her. Why does she live with them? Sora almost laughed at the thought of how they would respond if they knew the truth. But, it hardly mattered. Random girls… that’s all they were. Though, was she really any different?

As soon as class ended, Sora strolled out into the hall and headed straight for the music room, knowing Shuu would be in there, sprawled out on the floor like he always was. She entered the room almost silently, aside from the noise the door made when it glided shut behind her. Sure enough, she saw his blob of blonde locks before she saw anything else.

“Shuu?” Sora called out to him as she steadily walked towards the place on the floor where he was lounging. “Um,” she mumbled when he slowly tilted his head to look up at her with a single, tired, blue eye. “Here. You need to read this. I think they’re referral slips for your lack of atte-” With a groan, Shuu cut her off. “Really? You woke me for this?” She had reached her arm out in attempt to hand Shuu the papers; however, it was clear the vampire had no interest in them.

Scowling, Sora retracted her arm and swiftly replied to Shuu, her tone a little higher than before. “You can’t be skipping class every day. This is import-” Yet again, he cut her off, silencing her effortlessly. “It might seem that way in your feeble mind; but, to me, it is a waste of energy.” Sora stared down at the vampire, confusion present in her brown orbs.

“A waste? It’s important to plan for the future, isn’t it? Shuu-” Yet again, Sora suddenly went silent. Shuu’s eyes became fixated on her, staring at her properly for once. That stare alone was enough to silence the little human. That silence, however, was shortly lived, before Shuu reached up and grabbed her wrist. Sora yelped as his grip was tight and painful. The paperwork flung from her grasp and scattered around the room. With a simple tug on her arm, Sora jerked forward and collapsed on the floor.

Staring up at the ceiling, Sora felt a moment of déjà vu. How long ago was it that she was in this very position? Immediately, a blob of blonde came into view, before she became fixated on Shuu’s sapphire gaze. Their eyes met and a tremble shook her form. The vampire’s stare was not like the other times he looked at her: with teasing eyes or a lazy glance. Shuu’s stare expressed a new emotion, one she had yet to see in his eyes.

“What are you…?” Sora’s words trailed off as the answer seemed evident to her. His words from the previous night echoed in her head: Your body might suffice. With that thought alone, she began to panic. Her eyes widened and her lip quivered. “Get off!” she suddenly shrieked, legs wiggling helplessly from outside of Shuu’s thighs. “…always disturbing me and filling my ears with that annoying voice,” Shuu muttered, leaning down until his breath was present against her cheeks.

Sora didn’t think much on it, instinct driving her to turn her head to the side, as if to avoid him. Yet, her action only exposed skin and the expansion of unmarked flesh immediately caught Shuu’s gaze. Her hands lifted and grabbed at Shuu’s biceps. Her arms trembled from the resistance as she attempted to push Shuu away. He remained still, completely unfazed by her. “Don’t…! No! I don’t want-… I don’t want to be-….” Sora helplessly stammered, her mind racing and heart thumping unevenly.

As Shuu’s body lowered, she felt his chest slide against her. His cold breath fell upon her neck and she violently twitched. “Heh. You chose me, remember? You knew from the beginning what your purpose was…. Ah. But, you kept reaching out to me. Did you think I wouldn’t…?” His words struck her deeply. He was right. From the beginning, he seemed so uninterested. She had become comfortable, believing he wouldn’t try… He wouldn’t want to, but-…

“Let go, Shuu… Let go…” she whispered, voice so low that the sounds almost didn’t escape her. “You’re trembling so violently and I’ve hardly touched you. Hehe. Are you that afraid of me?” His lips fell upon her skin and Sora failed to contain a whimper. His skin was ice cold against her trembling form. “…such an appetizing smell…” he mumbled, a careless whisper, before he hissed so quietly.

Fangs pierced her neck, sending a sharp jolt of pain coursing through her. Sora shrieked, her voice caught in her throat and sounding as though she had the wind knocked out of her. Shuu’s hands fell upon her body, lifting her slightly as he drank. Yet, she never felt those hands. She hardly felt the ground beneath her. All she could feel was Shuu’s fangs, burning hot incisors buried in her flesh.

The invasion of his body inside hers, drawing blood from her veins to be sucked into his… Unable to move, Sora went limp, whimpering and squeezing at Shuu’s arms. Her heart thumped rapidly, only pushing the blood more quickly to Shuu’s mouth. His quiet drinking sounds filled her ears, drowning out the noise of her own panting. He pulled away, retracting his fangs for a brief moment, and she sighed pathetically. “You’ve become so warm. Heh. Are you enjoying yourself that much…?”

Sora’s eyes fluttered shut and her lips parted, though not a single word escaped her. Shuu groaned quietly as he found another place to bite, along the curve between her neck and shoulder. She could feel herself burning, melting away as he feasted upon her. The music room evaporated and all that she could feel was Shuu’s body, holding her down and stealing her blood…


	6. The Caress of Fangs

“Geez… what are you crying for? Stupid baby… It was only a joke. You’re the one that keeps going places you don’t belong… Just get over it! It was funny!” The stomping of their feet was the only thing that signaled to the small human that the others were gone. Despite that, she didn’t move from her spot on the floor. Her back was pressed against the wall, the curve of her spine painfully digging into the plaster.

[It wasn’t funny to me…]

The bell rang, signaling that their short break period was over and it was time to move on to their next class. Despite that, the girl didn’t remove herself from the wall. She remained perfectly still, trying to ignore the world shifting around her. She could feel the eyes of students staring as they slowed their walks in order to see what she was doing. A couple mutters could be heard as the students whispered back and forth. Though, not a soul stopped to poke at her, and that was for the best.

[I want to disappear… If I never existed-… that… would be better. I hate this place… I hate mys-… I hate everything… I don’t belong here. Why… am I here? Someone who doesn’t belong should-… disappear.]

Disappear...

...

"Miss Yasutake!” a roaring voice shook her to the bone. Sora jolted up, yelping in a startled voice, “y-yeah!?” In the corner of her eye, she caught the sight of her bedroom door trembling as a fist pounded on it. “I will not allow tardiness! Prepare for school at once!” Reiji’s frightening voice shouted from the hallway outside her door. She could hear the sounds of his footsteps as he departed, leaving her alone for the time being.

Sora shifted, tossing her legs over the edge of the bed and rising onto the wobbly limbs. She staggered around for a moment, releasing an uneven exhale. Immediately, she fell back onto the bed, but maintained an awkward seated position, slouching to her right side as the room spun around her. “What-… Ah-… I-…” she mumbled, trying to recall how she ended up this way. That’s right… Shuu had… for the first time…

Slowly, Sora’s dominant hand lifted and slid along her neck. The fabric of her clothing was disheveled horrendously, leaving a large portion of her neck and shoulder exposed. Her fingers slid along the skin and, every time she touched a bite, she winced. One… two… He had buried his fangs in her twice: two places tainted with little wounds that still scorched as though his incisors remained.

She knew he was a vampire. He had never hesitated to tell her this and, sometimes, when he spoke, she caught glimpses of the sharpened teeth nestled in his mouth. She felt his cold body multiple times. Though… Had she become too comfortable? Had she been convinced that he wouldn’t dare to bite her? But… Shuu had… so suddenly. Even then, she could still feel his weight above her, his hands holding her down, and his breath as he spoke.

“He was annoyed by me,” she commented to herself. Sora’s eyes narrowed, an exhausted, half-lidded expression dawning her features. She exhaled heavily, her palm still pressed over the burning bite marks on her neck and shoulder. When her fingers lowered, she felt the very wrinkled ribbon that just barely remained dangling around her collarbone. She was still wearing her school uniform. Ah. That’s right. She had fainted mere seconds after that second bite. Even now, she felt lightheaded and almost sickly… Had he carried her here? It sounded ridiculous; yet, she ended up here somehow.

Standing up yet again, Sora massaged her eyelids, groaning quietly. She stopped in front of her dresser, just in time to prevent herself from walking face first into the wood. She placed her non-dominant hand on the dresser to steady herself. As she grew more conscious, she started to recall her bizarre dream. It wasn’t just dream, was it? It was.. a distant memory.

“It’s strange… Last night, I was thinking about old things… Ah… Stupid,” Sora thought to herself, blinking tiredly. Had it been because of the blood loss? She always had strange dreams, but not ones like that… Groaning quietly, Sora opened her dresser and rummaged around. At least she had extra pairs of her uniform… Something that wasn’t wrinkled… and stained with blood.

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"That man is fuckin’ insane,” Sora growled to herself, mumbling under her breath as she trotted through the hall, fists clenched and eyes glaring blindly ahead of her. Her math teacher had given them extra homework as punishment, seeing as a majority of the students were struggling. Though, in truth, it was meant to be for practice, not punishment; however, her mind had certainly registered it differently. She was just barely passing, so it wasn’t as though she had much right to complain; yet, Sora was still irked by the situation. Literally no one on planet Earth enjoyed extra homework… Well, no one normal.

She turned the corner and headed up the stairs, stomping a little too loudly out of irritation. Just as she climbed over the first step and turned the corner, the front curve of her shoe hooked on something and she went tumbling. Sora landed on her side with a loud thump, legs curled over something… oh, someone. “Gn…” she groaned, turning herself and lifting slightly off the floor. She craned her neck and looked at the person she had fallen over. “Shuu!” she shrieked, the sound escaping her before she could process it.

The vampire was laying on the floor, legs stretched out and arms crossed over his chest. His head was awkwardly slouching forward, as though he was asleep, or attempting to be. Upon hearing Sora’s loud noise, and feeling her legs awkwardly sprawled over his lap, Shuu’s head slowly lifted and his blue orbs looked lazily at her. "I woke up because I could smell you… and thought, ‘oh, it’s that annoying woman again’,” Shuu commented sleepily, immediately yawning after he finished his sentence. Despite her best efforts, Sora had a strong feeling that her eyebrow was twitching and that her lip had curled into a scowl. Annoying…!?

“You keep falling over me… Is that some kink? …trying to show me your panties?” Shuu suggested. His tone was still tired and his expression had not changed, but the slight hint of a tease was evident in his words. His words made Sora’s jaw drop. “Wha-!? No!” Sora sputtered and screeched at him. She quickly removed her legs from Shuu’s lap and staggered to her feet. Upon doing so, she backed right into someone, colliding with a much larger form that nearly engulfed hers entirely. Sora quickly spun away from the stranger, only to be face to face with another vampire. However, his gaze was more focused on the one on the floor.

"People walk here. The hell are ya’ doin’?” Yuma questioned, his voice, as usual, rather loud. Shuu, who had barely budged an inch, was still on the floor, legs stretched out and looking half-asleep. “Eh? I’m talking to ya’, neet!” Yuma shouted, his voice echoing around them and stinging Sora’s ears. He stomped his foot on the floor, making the boards shake.

“Yelling… to make you sound less stupid?” Shuu mumbled, almost as though he was talking to himself. “Eh!? What did you say!?” Yuma whaled, leaning over slightly to look down at Shuu, bringing their faces a little closer together. “If you’re gonna talk shit, say it so I can hear ya’!” he proclaimed, glaring menacingly at the blonde haired vampire.

Shuu tilted his head back and looked up at Yuma’s angry face. Their gazes, two stern glares, met. Sora watched Shuu’s expression shift subtly. He blinked once, then twice, and then she could see his gaze soften. “You…” he mumbled, trailing off. Yuma made a noise, a grunt, as though he expected Shuu to hurry up and spit it out. Shuu’s eyes narrowed, as though he was concentrating; then, in a split second, he blinked and that expression reverted to irritation. “Get out of my face. You stink.”

Sora stared at Shuu, her lips parted and brow, almost flabbergasted, simply because she didn’t know what to make of the situation. Yuma snarled, baring his fangs before shouting, “Ya’ tryin’ to fight or something? Ya’ stupid aristocrat!” After hearing that bellowing whale, Sora grumbled to herself, “I don’t have time for this…” She trotted up the other half of the staircase, heading for her next class and attempting to ignore the boys arguing behind her.

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At lunch time, Sora stomped her way up to the roof and sat down on the floor, her back pressing against the metal railing. She set her notebook on her lap, while also balancing her lunch. She alternated between writing sloppily and taking bites. No matter what, she didn’t want to let herself become too distracted to not do what she loved the most… even if it proved to be a challenge.

Perhaps, she was a little more surprised than she cared to admit. Upon leaving the mansion this morning, she expected things to be… complicated. Yet, she had managed to endure the silent car ride with Shuu and had even tripped over him moments ago. Things between them had not changed. He was still lazing about, barely looking at her, and she… endured as best as she could. It was strange, indeed; but… she was getting by, at least.

Deep down, Sora knew that her personality had shifted. She had become more irritable and more… passive? Even though she had not spent much time with the pureblood, she had felt his strength. It was subtle… but evident. When he pinned her down, he was as firm as a brick wall, though flexible and lively. How little she could fight him was frightening, but not as frightening as the look of hunger in his eyes.

She had been… eaten… The mere thought made her bite wounds sting. The feeling was almost indescribable. Shuu’s lips on her skin, his fangs buried in her flesh… and the feeling of her blood being drawn to the wounds, sucked from her veins. His words were still so clear in her mind. “You chose me, remember? You knew from the beginning what your purpose-”

“Oi,” a voice suddenly called out. Having been so concentrated, with food in one hand and her pencil in the other, and her thoughts running rampant, Sora hadn’t heard Yuma coming, nor did she realize he was inches from her face. She yelped and flinched, nearly dropping everything that was sprawled out on her lap. “Ahe. Did I scare ya’? Geez, sow,” Yuma commented with a chuckle, shoulders twitching from his laughter. He walked around her and plopped down, joining her on the ground.

Before she even had the chance to question him, Yuma began, “So… Tell me what’s up with him…” Yuma stared at Sora, his bright eyes clearly expecting something, though she just stared back at him, blinking slowly. Of the demands she expected Yuma to make, that was not one of them. Growling quietly, he continued, “the neet, duh…” Sora pouted at the giant, her eyes narrowing slightly. “Why?” she asked bluntly, completely stumped as to why he would request such a thing.

Yuma returned Sora’s pout, though his expression was more of a dignified glare, contrasting her foolish expression. “Well, 'cause… There’s something about him that bugs the shit outta me. Like-… maybe we’ve met before. I can’t remember… So, since you refused my invitation to be my food, you can repay me by helping me remember. Got it?”

For a brief second, Sora mulled over Yuma’s words, before she sharply turned her head away from him and laughed briefly. “What!?” he shouted at her. Once her laughter subsided, Sora scooted away from the large vampire, trying to create more adequate distance between them. “I just… hadn’t expected that,” Sora explained, her eyes shifting from Yuma to her food, before moving back up to his striking gaze.

“That’s not going to work out, though,” she added on. “Hah?” Yuma questioned back, less of a word and more of a sound. “Shuu doesn’t talk to me,” Sora confessed, stating it so plainly as though she expected this to be obvious to Yuma. It seemed rather silly in her mind. What did he expect her to do…?

“Eh? That’s not my problem,” Yuma retorted, standing up and walking away from her. He paused for a moment, shoving his hands in his pockets before turning his head to look back at her. “Figure it out, sow,” the vampire commented before departing, leaving her alone again on the roof.

For a moment, Sora stared at the door where Yuma had left, thoughts running rampant. “If Yuma knew Shuu before, why not just confront him…? Without fighting… Geez. Freakin’ vampires…” Though… strangely, Yuma’s words had distracted Sora so much that she struggled to write that lunch break. The Sakamaki’s and the Mukami’s… Two vampire families… What was it about them…?

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[There’s some weird habit I have… When I feel restless, I like to wander around aimlessly and search for a place to sit and write… or maybe just daydream scenes for my stories. I’m aware of this habit, obviously, but… I shouldn’t do it, seeing as I’m living with these vampires, now. I could end up being munched on by someone else; however, it seems to be the only way I can find any peace anymore. There is this room on the first floor I found and I must say… I love it.]

[This mansion must have been crafted by humans, or at least… it feels that way. This room… I think I read about it before. It’s a sun room; only… instead, I guess it’s more accurately a moon room for these guys. Almost all the posterior walls are covered in massive windows, allowing the moonlight to pour in. I found it stunningly beautiful, amongst all this old furniture and the oriental rugs. I could prop up on the couch, sit at the desk, lean against the window: the possibilities were endless. Only problem was…]

[I wasn’t alone tonight…]

Sora had only discovered this room yesterday; however, upon her second arrival, she found she wasn’t alone. A familiar vampire was sprawled out on the lush couch, his messy, blonde locks fluffed up behind his head, smooshed against the soft pillow beneath him. Sora entered the room slowly, trying to take quiet footsteps, all while wondering if she could do as she pleased without waking him. She could still lean against the window, but-…

“You again…” he commented quietly, having yet to open his eyes. Her scent had given her away, not that it was particularly potent. Her feminine smell stood out in contrast to the leather bound books and freshly polished wood. “Geez… Such a pain. What do you want, now?” Shuu questioned, his irritation rather subtle behind his tired tone.

Sora squeezed her notebook, her brown orbs focused on Shuu’s face. His eyelids twitched subtly as he wiggled around on the couch, attempting to get more comfortable. “I just came here to write,” Sora answered. She licked her lips, resisting the urge to scoff sarcastically at the chance that her writing would be too noisy for him. It likely would sound as bad aloud as it did in her head.

“In here…?” Shuu commented quietly, boredly. “Um… Well, I like the atmosphere of this room,” Sora replied. The room was a unique combination; it had a stunning view of the forests surrounding the woods, while also letting in the natural moonlight, and was designed like a study. Truth be told, in here… she felt more like a real writer, if such a thing could be said. Perhaps, she enjoyed the chance to play pretend – that she wasn’t living with ravenous vampires.

“You have strange habits… Fine, then,” Shuu commented, finally opening his eyes. “If you want to use this room… help me up…” His request, while a little bizarre, didn’t immediately strike Sora has unusual. He had quipped at her before to carry him, amongst other strange requests. If it meant she could be alone with her thoughts, so be it. Sora nodded and approached Shuu. Her hand extended, reaching for his arm. Immediately, the pureblood’s hand lifted and grabbed at her wrist.

“Ah…! That – Shuu, that hurts!” she whined, her eyelids squeezing shut and her jaw clenching as Shuu’s larger hand enveloped her frail wrist. His grip was painfully rough and ensured she couldn’t jerk free. He tugged her slightly, forcing one of Sora’s knees to fall onto the couch. Hovering above him, Sora looked down at Shuu, her expression somewhat fearful.

“…I didn’t finish. If you want me to leave, offer yourself to me…” Shuu explained, his sapphire orbs staring at her so intensely that she trembled. So quickly, she had been tricked by his passive behavior. Sora didn’t have to guess what it was that Shuu demanded, though she chose to play dumb anyway.

“Shuu, let go. I’m not-…! I’m not playing with you!” Words sputtered from Sora’s mouth as she began to panic. Her hand clamped over Shuu’s. She clawed at his fingers as she tried to pry them off her wrist, though it was absolutely hopeless. “Is that so…? Hehe… That’s not true, is it? Your scent… suggests otherwise,” Shuu taunted her, tugging a little harsher. Sora fell forward and collapsed on top of Shuu, sprawled awkwardly on top of him. He released her wrist, only to snake an arm around her mid-section.

“Gh!” Sora shrieked, startled by the feeling of Shuu’s fingers sliding along her lower back. “Excited over such a simple touch?” he taunted, immediately receiving a snarl from Sora. Her desperate flailing stopped quickly when she felt every inch of Shuu’s body beneath her. She could even feel his breath on her neck, making the situation all the more dire.

“I’ll w-write somewhere else!” she stammered out, looking down at the vampire beneath her. Shuu was staring up at her, eyelashes fanning slowly and lips parted. That look of hunger… No… No… No… Not again!

“You woke me from a good sleep. I’ll let you leave after I damage you further,” Shuu replied, his face ascending until his lips found the underside of her jaw. As his lips trailed along her skin, Sora violently trembled, startled by the bizarre sensation. It was such a delicate touch, a teasing one at that, and her reaction made Shuu chuckle. “Your body is dying for it. Heh. You’re a real lewd woman, aren’t you?”

Sora’s eyelids trembled, her bottom lip quivering. Her hands were planted on either side of Shuu’s head, fingers digging into the couch’s soft cushioning. “…here…” Shuu mumbled before parting his lips and letting his fangs slide into a section of unblemished flesh, right along the curve of her neck. As expected, Sora cried out in shock from the pain. His lips pressed against her skin, a gentle caress that was in such sharp contrast to the harshness of his fangs. The sucking sound was ringing in Sora’s ears for a brief moment before being drowned in the harsh thumping of her own heartbeat.

After a few minutes, Shuu slowly separated and exhaled, a satisfied groan accompanying. “It’s better this time. Heh. Were you looking forward to this?” he taunted her, his words fluttering so suavely, though they were unbelievably cruel to the human. She couldn’t say a word and was helpless to resist him any further. “I’ll drink plenty and you… endure the pain…”

[No matter how badly I want to resist, I can’t move. Where do I even begin to explain what it’s like… feeling Shuu’s fangs inside me… and knowing my blood is being drained, consumed by him so eagerly. The first time… I couldn’t feel much aside from his fangs. Tonight… I feel everything: the weight of his hands, the firmness of his chest beneath me, the gentle breeze of him breathing through his nose…]

[Everything… I feel everything… Please… hurry up… Make it stop… make it stop…]


	7. A Feeble Mind

It had not surprised the vampire much to find that the girl had, yet again, fainted within his grasp. Her body had gone limp after awhile, just as he was beginning to peak in satisfaction. Her blood, while ordinary, was satisfying, and managed to quiet her constant complaining, while also calming his thirst. She had dared to choose him, so he had no qualms about making use of her body, even if it wasn’t as satisfactory as he would have preferred.

Though, even so, Shuu couldn’t deny that he found his actions a bit bizarre. His thirst was not usually so insatiable, yet he found himself taking opportunities when they were presented: devouring this girl as she wandered into the lion’s den without any second thoughts. The carelessness of humans really was astonishing. Quickly, he brushed those thoughts aside, deciding he was overthinking it… overthinking this silly girl.

After she fainted, Shuu nudged her to the side, rolling her over so that she was laying on the couch and he was nuzzled beside her. His fingers slid along her neck and jaw, brushing aside thick, brown locks that blocked his view. Her head tilted back, her cheek laying limply on the couch. For a brief moment, Shuu’s sapphire orbs watched her, his eyes soaking in the sight of the partially healed bite wound from the previous night. It had scabbed over, though it left Shuu to wonder if it would leave behind subtle scars.

It didn’t matter… If another took interest in sullied prey, so be it. Bite marks were nothing more than that: evidence of his feast.

For a moment, Shuu admired the way in which she breathed, finding a strange charm in the evidence of her living. Subtly, the human’s chest rose and fell with each breath, lungs swelling and compressing again and again. Her lips were parted, the gentle breeze blowing against his hand as he hovered above her. He contemplated biting her again, forcing her awake to soak in her fear while he drank. Her startled screams would undoubtedly amuse him. However, going back to sleep seemed more appealing. He had heard enough of her for one night.

Besides, she wanted the room to herself, didn’t she? Had he not made this agreement with her? Heh… How foolish she was to approach him. But, then, some humans never learned, did they? Always so easily fooled by appearances… In the end, looks was all they really cared for, amongst other silly, mindless things.

Shuu slid off the couch and rose to his feet. Upon taking his first footstep, his heel landed on something, a crunch resonating around the room. Shuu stepped away and looked down, realizing he had stepped on a pencil and it now laid in pieces on the floor. Beside it was a notebook, laying awkwardly on the ground.

Ah… Had she dropped those things when he tugged on her? Not thinking much of it, Shuu leaned down and picked up the notebook, leaving the broken pencil on the floor. It was a cheap notebook, bound with cardboard and compressed paper, nothing like what his favorite manuscripts were crafted of and most certainly not like the leather-bound books in this room.

Doubting that this pathetic mortal could create a string of interesting sentences, Shuu carelessly tossed her book onto the coffee table in front of the couch. It clattered quietly with the other books, sticking out like a sore thumb.

He departed from the room, leaving the little human as she had requested, alone in the room of her liking. As he walked back to his bedroom, his dominant hand lifted to click at the buttons on his MP3 player. It was on shuffle, shifting from one style to the next. He eventually settled on Dvorac, shrugging his shoulders carelessly and deciding to simply let the violin take him away.

Just as it began, Shuu entered his bedroom, using his heel to kick the door shut behind him. Carelessly, he collapsed on his bed, going limp exactly where he landed. The sheets were in disarray, partially on the floor and tossed about. His head just barely missed the pillow, though it wasn’t much of a concern. He wiggled his shoulders and hips, just until he was settled, and closed his eyes.

The melody from the violin was soothing. The simpleness in the strumming was something he was certain would take him away. The occasional buzzing of piano keys in the background kept him focused. It truly was a beautiful piece, albeit short and simple. It was at least suitable enough to entertain him for awhile.

Lights and visions danced behind Shuu’s eyelids, his thoughts drifting away into a peaceful numbness. He normally daydreamed at times like this, thinking of careless, senseless things before allowing the nymph, the seductress called sleep, to capture him. However, simple, incoherent thoughts were not what occupied Shuu’s mind. The sudden flush of coldness over his body made him groan with irritation. Something lingered, tugging so subtly on his mind, occupying his thoughts.

It was only then that Shuu realized how thick that woman’s presence had remained on him. Her scent lingered on his clothes and, as though she was still there, he could smell her hair, a reminder that it was draped across his face mere seconds ago. Even more so, her blood was still present on his tongue. The wet organ slid across the roof of his mouth, as if trying to brush away the memory of her blood. The faint taste that it left behind was irritating. It was not sweet, nor bitter, but some melancholy inbetween.

“…hn,” he groaned quietly, eyes narrowing as he glared up at the ceiling. For a moment, Shuu watched the fan spinning, swooshing the air in a very quiet sound, though it was drowned by the music spewing from his earbuds. One… two… three… Eventually, the intrusive vixen finally let him go.

Having a human in the house was not entirely abnormal. Father sent sacrifices all the time. They made for great meals and gave a bit of life to the mansion. Shuu’s brothers always enjoyed the toys, finding great amusement in playing with them until they either burst into madness or were completely void of blood. It was not uncommon for the house to smell of corpses. Though, even more so… How many had dared to attempt to flee, only to be dragged back, their hair tangled in Uncle Richter’s fingers?

Silly creatures… They should have known better. Though, even Shuu understood that humans were flighty beings. They desired things they could never obtain: freedom, eternal life… Even the immortal vampires could not taste true life forever. It was drained and sullied eventually. They all knew that. The desire for freedom… That was something else entirely.

Women… brides… picked him from time to time, though they often changed their minds soon after. An occasional, easy feast was not unenjoyable, for it was the only value he could get out of them… for a little while. Shuu did not come with the promise that his brothers did. He was the oldest, but that by no means meant he was willing to offer anything. Women would flee from him upon realizing this. He was a musician… not an instrument, and would not be played.

“Shuu, please pay attention. This is important,” Sora pleaded with the pureblood, her arms crossed as she glared at him. Of course Shuu heard her. His keen ears picked up all sorts of things, even when music was humming. He just didn’t care about what she had to say, or what she wanted him to do. Her concerns about the project they were supposed to do together was almost laughable. This human… perhaps… was more frustrating than the rest, for the mere fact that she simply wouldn’t leave him alone.

Sora sighed, loudly, as if trying to get a reaction from him. That sound did annoy him, though he didn’t express that. When she walked away, his eyes opened and he watched her stomp away. His eyes flickered downward, though the school uniform was not form fitting, and didn’t exactly provide a nice view. She wore tall stockings that covered the skin of her legs, essentially keeping herself hidden from his prying eyes.

Indeed… this woman… was absolutely worthless. What was the point if he couldn’t ogle her body, even if it was as average as they came? Her voice… the way she walked… every little thing about her was ordinary. Modesty? Right… So, then, that was the game she played? Geez…

Shuu watched in silence as Sora reached up, propping up on her toes and her fingers extending as she tried to reach one of the taller books. He didn’t budge from his seat and just stared, amused at the sight of her trying to reach a shelf that was out of her reach. At some point, she huffed and gave up, trotting back to her seat with a look of defeat. Unable to resist, Shuu stifled a chuckle, though she clearly heard: the pathetic little glare she shot him said so. Never the less, Shuu continued to listen to his music and the little human read the books that she could reach.

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

As it always did, the week fluttered by, and Shuu spent the majority of it watching the little mortal slave away over a worthless homework assignment. These senseless projects couldn’t be less important to him. Teachers gave these pointless assignments under the guise of a “learning experience”. Humans really did enjoy wasting their life away with nonsensical things, didn’t they? Though, a short life was quite the handicap.

It was Sunday and Shuu was enjoying the serenity of the living room, finding that the couch was particularly comfy this evening and his music was rather soothing and fitting for the atmosphere. Sora was sitting on the floor, arched over the coffee table with paperwork, pencils, and notebooks scattered about. She seemed so determined to waste her energy on this… How bizarre.

The project was due in the middle of the week, but she wanted to finish as much as possible ahead of time, so at least she could spend her free time on more preferable activities. It didn’t help that she was doing the work of two people, seeing as she had given up trying to convince Shuu to help. She would have had an easier time rolling a boulder up a hill. Doing the project in his presence at least allowed her to occasionally nag him with questions when she lacked the answer.

There was more to be done, but she needed books from the library to complete those final sections. Exhaling heavily, Sora stood up and gathered the materials, sliding the paperbook into a binder and gathering the pencils and notebooks, stacking them in an organized fashion with the intention of carrying them back to her bedroom.

“Ne, Shuu,” Ayato barked, roughly slamming his foot into one of the couch legs. The couch violently jerked, slightly shifting the vampire that rested atop it. Having not even heard him coming, the sudden sound startled Sora and she jolted, slightly. She nearly dropped the clatter in her arms and quickly set it down to prevent it from spilling onto the floor.

“I don’t care what the stupid glasses freak says,” Ayato explained, shedding a toothy grin that showed off the canines in his mouth. “Belonging to only one of us and that crap…” Sora slowly stood up straight, her eyes fixated on the red haired vampire, soaking in his words. “Stop being a greedy bastard and share your food with us…” Ayato placed a hand on his hip and stared down at Shuu, eyes narrowed as he awaited an answer.

There was a brief moment of silence, soaking in the room like a heavy aura. “…whatever,” Shuu eventually replied, a quiet whisper. “Do what you please and leave me alone.” It was strange to Sora, but she caught herself staring, wide eyed at the blonde haired vampire. It was not that she was particularly surprised, but perhaps… upset? She wasn’t stupid: she knew they were talking about her. Shuu had even said that she picked him, so… so… That meant that he would-…

“Aren’t you being greedy, Ayato-kun?” another voice cooed, the sound thumping in Sora’s ear, the cold breath tickling strands of brown hair. “Trying to make a move when no one else is around?” Ayato walked around the couch and approached her as another hand slid over her hip. She recognized that voice as Laito’s. His sultry tone was unmistakable.

“Then get in line. I already called dibs,” Ayato snapped back, reaching for the human. Panicking, Sora jerked around, trying to wiggle her way out of Laito’s grasp. She frantically searched her mind, seeking the proper words to say to them. “H-hey, I already made my decision! Don’t you remember…! I chose Shuu! -and… I’ve already… been bitten!” she explained, still continuing to thrash, albeit weakly, in Laito’s grasp. He was barely holding onto her, though his powerful grip was enough to keep her still. It seemed that her words fell upon deaf ears, for there was no hesitation or even a reply from the vampires.

"I agree, Teddy. They really are despicable,” Kanato commented, his voice a little faint, though still recognizable. In the corner of her eye, Sora could see his purple locks. He was standing at the stair case, leaning against the railing, with Teddy pressed against his chest. “They were going to gobble her up without leaving any for us… How greedy.”

"Stop making such a fuss,” Subaru chimed in, grunting quietly as he crossed his arms over his chest. He was standing by the fireplace, his back pressed against the curvature of the granite. One of his boots was propped up on the ledge. “Some of us are dying of thirst while you’re busy fucking around. Otherwise, hand her over…”

The red haired third-born growled, swiftly turning to face Subaru. “Piss off!” Ayato snarled. “Just cause you didn’t have the balls to make a move first!” Ayato turned away from Subaru as his words trailed off, and his green orbs fell onto Sora’s face once more. Subaru growled and stood up straight, making a stance as though he was about to make a move, though he stood his ground.

With the vampire staring at the human, Sora was like a deer in headlights, staring up at him with trembling, frightened brown orbs. Her thoughts were jumbled, terrified of the position she was in: pressed between Laito and Ayato, while nearly everyone in the room made it clear what their intentions were. Laito’s hand brushed fabric aside, touching the bare skin of her hip: the intimate touch made her violently tremble. She jerked and attempted to remove his hand, her own squeezing at his wrist, though Laito only giggled, finding her resistance amusing.

Sora’s eyes flickered to where Shuu rested on the couch. He wasn’t even looking at her, his eyes closed and still lounging so pleasantly. “Sh-…” Sora began, but her words became caught in her throat, sounding less like his name and more like a pathetic wisp of air between her lips. She… She wanted to call out to him, as bizarre as that was. She wanted him to-… to… She had feared his fangs, feared his vampiric hunger… However, she feared the others, more. She feared… Ah. It was clear to her, wasn’t it? She was going to die.

"You don’t care about what I have to say, Ayato?” a voice hummed across the room, loud and stern. Sora didn’t have to guess. It was obvious who said that. Ayato’s advances had come to a pause and he rotated his chest, turning to face the older vampire, who was now standing in the center of the room, glaring from behind the shimmer of his glasses.

“So, then… If I had not dared to intervene, the lot of you would have taken turns tearing this woman apart… all while the disgusting creature on the couch bared witness? I suppose I should be more surprised… Though, I expect that from wild animals…” Reiji’s words trailed off and his eyes fell upon Sora for a brief moment before flickering down to where Shuu laid on the couch.

Sora could practically hear Ayato’s jaw tighten and teeth clatter as he snarled at the older vampire. “No one asked for your opinion, four-eyes!” Those words went unnoticed by Reiji, who was now fixated on Shuu. He glared down at the unmoving vampire, a look of utter disgust on his face.

“Silly creatures are always taken aback by you,” Reiji commented. “You just lay there and do nothing while the world carries on and everything you own is taken away. Pitiful. Hmph…” Reiji’s words trailed off and he walked away from the couch, approaching Sora, Laito, and Ayato. “Move,” he sternly growled. Ayato remained where he was, fists clenching and glaring. “Since there is all this fuss over a single prey, I will take the role of her master.”

Sora stared at the approaching vampire, flabbergasted to what she should say to him. Her mind was racing: this couldn’t really be happening, right? From one vampire… to the next, then…?

Reiji’s approaching form paused when he heard a quiet grunt and the couch squeaking. He went still and turned to face Shuu, who was now seated on the couch, his legs swung over the side and feet firmly planted on the floor. He rotated his chest and fixed his eyes on Reiji. Shuu’s sapphire orbs glared at Reiji, an almost uncharacteristic stare that was as frightening as it was ice cold.

“I didn’t agree to giving her away,” he harshly whispered, voice only audible due to the silence floating around the room. “Oh? So, then, just like that, you’ll change your mind? Are you that much of a child - that you only desire something when it is threatened to be lost?” Reiji questioned Shuu, his voice loud, though low like a snarl. Shuu lifted off the couch and onto his feet, muttering, “say what you want…”

Once the blonde haired vampire was standing, Sora felt Laito’s hands release her. “So scary, Shuu~ ♪ You can’t just let your brothers have fun?” Laito commented, his tone teasing, though he was clearly backing off. That in itself was bizarre and Sora felt the temptation to turn her head back and look at Laito, just to get a glimpse of his expression, though she remained still.

That’s right… Shuu was the oldest… She knew that, of course; however, this was the first time she really knew that. It was the most startling thing. There was pure intimidation in the mere act of Shuu rising to his feet. For a moment, the room was oddly silent, aside from the vampire’s shoes tapping on the floor.

Shuu approached Sora, not even bothering to step around the brothers that blocked his path. He barely missed Reiji’s shoulder as he walked by and Ayato stepped out of the way, though he was clearly clenching his jaw, searching for protesting words against the eldest. For a brief moment, Sora felt relief, that she was safe, for now, at least, for Shuu had finally-… However, relief was a very short reaction to Shuu’s advances. When his dominant hand slid over her neck and jaw, and she gazed up at him, relief turned to fear.

The look… of hunger…

“Your scent is so rich. Heh. Were you hoping I would rescue you?” Shuu questioned her, his words a low, harsh whisper, though it was very likely that all his brothers could hear him. She wanted to step back, to wiggle away from him, or utter a word in her defense… Yet, in that moment, Shuu’s eyes rendered her still and silent. Shuu marveled at the sight. Those eyes… like a doe’s eyes… staring up at him. For a brief second, even he was caught in that glimpse.

Having moved away, Laito now stood behind the couch, leaning over the back frame and watching with a devilish smirk. Ayato stepped back and crossed his arms, anger evident on his features, though he didn’t look away. For a moment, Reiji looked nothing short of disgusted; however, that face contorted when Shuu’s hands roughly fell upon Sora’s body.

“What are you doing!?” he whaled as the blonde haired vampire twisted Sora around until her back was curled against his chest, forcing her to face the lot of them. His dominant hand held her jaw, tilting her head back slightly, so her neck protruded tantalizingly. His other arm was curled around her waist, loosely, but firm enough to keep her in place. Sora’s hands fell upon Shuu’s arms, trying to pry him off as discomfort and embarrassment washed over her.

“Shuu - gh… What are you-…?” she questioned, words unconsciously spewing from her lips. The fang marks on her neck began to burn and her skin trembled, unconsciously aware of what was about to come. Her heart thumped, beating loudly in her chest and violently against her ribs. “No - not… not here… Shuu stop… Stop!” she pleaded with him, unaware of how weak her voice sounded.

“Don’t be so vulgar in our-” Reiji began, his words scolding and harsh; however, Shuu was quick to silence him. “Be quiet. If you don’t want to watch, then leave,” Shuu snapped at him, watching as his younger brother glared, his brow twitching subtly and lips curling into a scowl. “You were all making so much noise over this… Then, I’ll just prove she’s my possession…”

Shuu’s head descended, his lips falling onto Sora’s neck. His tongue flicked out, tasting her skin. The coldness of his tongue, like frozen metal, made her violently tremble, and she could feel him chuckle into her flesh. “You’re burning up. Heh. You’re dying for this, aren’t you?” Even if she wanted to, Sora couldn’t reply. In a single motion, Shuu descended upon her, sinking his fangs into the soft flesh of her throat.

Helplessly, Sora cried out, her eyelids squeezing shut from the pain… and the embarrassment. As Shuu held her close and gulped down her blood, she could feel the eyes of his brothers, staring and soaking in her expression. She didn’t know what she looked like, but the heat on her cheeks and how her lips parted gave her a decent idea… and it made her feel all the worse. They smelt her blood, but remained still and simply watched, no one daring to appose him.

His bite was different this time. It was deep, rough… angry? No… Threatened. She was just an example, a show for his younger siblings. As Sora’s vision went blurry, her thoughts completely jumbled, and consciousness steadily slipping away, that was the last thought on her mind.

[…you… monster…]


	8. His Possession

Her vision had blurred and colors began to mix together until she nearly lost sight completely. What ensued was not fainting, as she had the past two bites, but some form of partial consciousness. She became limp, losing the strength to hold herself up and forgetting what it was to be grounded. Shuu’s arms were the only things holding her up, and Sora merely went limp in his grasp.

“Tch. Whatever, Shuu,” someone growled, likely Ayato. There was a loud stomping sound as he swiftly marched out of the room. Subaru and Laito departed quickly, but silently. Kanato sniffled, whispering to his bear, though it went unheard, and he quickly left, as well. Reiji, for a moment stood there, and watched as Shuu retracted his fangs from the poor mortal’s neck. Sora slumped in his grasp, but remained on her feet. Her head had tilted forward, long, brown locks shielding her face.

Reiji’s eyes narrowed at the sight of some blood trickling down Shuu’s lip and chin, a bright red strand that stuck out against his pale skin. Shuu’s sapphire orbs stared back at Reiji, silently expressing that he had made his point. The sloppy bite wound on Sora’s neck began to ooze and painfully throbbed. The smell of her blood tainted the living room, hovering like a thick aura. At that point, there was nothing more to be said and Reiji left the room, leaving nothing but a nearly silent whisk as he vanished.

For a moment, Shuu believed she had fainted again, but then he felt Sora’s hands weakly push against him. He released her, and she immediately crumbled to the ground, landing awkwardly on her legs with a thump. Her body slumped forward and her chest and forearms touched the ground. Trembling, she kept herself up, just enough to keep herself from becoming flat against the cold floor.

Shuu wiped the blood off his chin, gathering it on the pad of his finger before licking it clean with a single flick of his tongue. His eyes glanced down at her for a moment, watching her tremble on the floor. “Why-…” Sora began, searching for the energy to speak to him. “Why did you-… do… that…?” However, her words were barely even heard by the vampire. When Sora finally lifted herself high enough and raised her head, she saw Shuu’s retreating form climbing the staircase. She watched his back as he disappeared down the hallway, staring with a confused expression. “Why… Shuu…?” she mumbled again, knowing he didn’t hear her words, merely speaking aloud out of carelessness.

Rising onto wobbly feet, Sora staggered her way over to the couch and plopped down, exhaling unevenly. She slowly glided back, until her head fell upon the arm rest and her trembling legs lifted onto the couch. Long strands of brown hair slipped over her shoulder and dangled over the edge of the couch. She stared blindly across the living room, panting quietly as she tried to regain some strength. She knew… right now… if she tried to climb the stairs, she’d collapse.

[ Laying in the living room… I was alone, like I had been the entire time I had been in this mansion… Yet, in that moment, it seemed all that more obvious. I was not only alone physically… This entire ordeal: I was completely on my own. Shuu… and his brothers…. talked about me as if I had no consciousness, like I was a creature that couldn’t think for myself. My value was questionable before this moment. But, now… I have no doubts of their thoughts - their intentions ]

[ Shuu had called me… his possession… before presenting his brothers the proof of that… by consuming my blood. Their eyes had burnt holes through me, and I could feel their heavy gazes. Shuu bite was stinging and I could feel the trickle of warm blood staining my shirt. His masculine smell had lingered on the couch… and, for once, it made me feel sick ]

[ Is that-… it, then? This is what my life will amount to, from now on…? ]

That Monday continued just as expected: Sora and Shuu met in the library to continue the project they were supposed to complete together. Once more, the human found she could sit with him, and not feel any more distant than she already had. Sitting with the beast whom was slowly eating her… was oddly natural at this point.

Sora was close to completion and didn’t bother messing with Shuu, simply allowing him to lean back in his seat and listen to his MP3 player while she looked over the fine details of the project. She began to grow irritated after awhile, merely because the information she needed was not in any of her notes, meaning it wasn’t in any of the books she had read earlier.

Closing her notebooks and sighing, Sora rose from her seat. One of Shuu’s eyes lazily opened, peaking out to glance at the woman’s retreating form. She walked over to the same shelf she had attempted to reach before. The book she wanted was rather obvious, since it had a burgundy-colored spine with a weird texture that caught the light.

She reached upward, standing on her toes, the same as she had last week. Her nails just barely scraped the bottom hinge of the book and she made bizarre, quiet sounds as she forced her muscles to stretch, hoping she could snag the book. Shuu watched from his seat, amused once more at the sight of her standing on her toes. Yet, this time… something struck him. It was bizarre, but he was tempted.

Sora didn’t hear the vampire rise from his chair and approach her. She only noticed his presence when she felt him move in behind her. He was careless, standing directly behind her, with his chest nearly pressed flush against her back. Sora made a quiet gasp, turning her head to look back at him, her neck slightly arched as her head tilted back, eyes flickering upward to accommodate for the height difference. “Shuu, wha-… O-oh…” she mumbled unconsciously, questioning his actions before immediately silencing herself as she realized what he was doing.

Shuu reached for the book, effortlessly snagging it and removing it from the spot where it was tightly nudged onto the shelf. As his arm came down, Shuu’s sapphire orbs flickered downward and caught Sora’s gaze. “T-thanks, Shuu,” she mumbled, nervousness only a tinge apparent when their gazes met.

She was staring up at him, in the same way she did when he approached her a few days ago. Her brown orbs were big, shimmering with some innocent, yet tainted, curiosity. Once again, his thoughts wandered and he saw the eyes of a doe, like a creature staring at him from between brush in the deep woods.

He and Sora had been close a handful of times, and he had tasted her flesh and blood, absorbed her scent, and enjoyed texture of her skin, but he never truly looked at her. His eyes wandered over her facial features, from the darkened tints of her freckles to the pink of her lips. A single word crossed his thoughts: delicious.

Without thinking much of it, the vampire’s head descended. His lips captured a strange noise, a surprised little squeak, gobbling it up. As expected, her lips were soft and delicious, warm against his ice cold skin, and undeniably tempting. It didn’t last long, however, before he pulled back, eyes never leaving hers for a second. A quiet, fleshy noise echoed between them as they separated. Sora’s dark lashes fluttered as she continued to stare up at him, orbs slightly bigger from the surprise.

Shuu nudged the book into Sora’s hands and she took it from his grasp, fingers curling weakly over the leather. His lips flashed her a smile before he turned away and returned to his desk. Her heart was hammering against her rib cage and her cheeks burned uncomfortably hot. “It was just a kiss,” she thought to herself… and that was how she shook it off.

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Sora paused, humming quietly to herself as she found herself figuratively backed into a corner. She lifted her pen from the paper and clicked the end, retracting the ink covered opposite end. She rotated the pen, spinning it within her grasp, and tapped the clicking end against her chin, mulling over the passage she had just written.

“He was trapped…” she whispered, quietly reading aloud. “…with no option, but to fight his way through the army. They were common, foot soldiers, and nothing more. Yet, he was easily outnumbered: a hundred to one…” She trailed off, running out of words to read. She stared blindly at the paper and words she had scribbled. It was less of a chapter, and more of a poorly written rough draft; but, it was still important. This scene was meant to build to something important.

“How is he…” Sora mumbled to herself, words fading into silence as she switched to her thoughts, instead. She blinked slowly, letting herself slip away to try and become one with the moment, daydreaming about the scene and trying to find the best way for it to unfold.

But, then, a noise caught her attention. There was a quiet fluttering sound as a small creature decided to make itself known. It fluttered its wings, loud enough to ensure she could hear it. Sora turned her upper chest to look behind her. It flapped its wings again and she tilted her head back, looking upward towards the ceiling: the source of the noise.

A little black creature was hanging from the ceiling. It’s form suggested it was a bat: a cylindrical body with a small head and flapping wings extended from its trunk. It was completely black, nearly void of a proper form, though two, bright red eyes were beaming at her. It said no words, though she somehow understood what it wanted from her. Go to the dining room. It’s time for the monthly, family dinner.

Oh… Right. Reiji had told her about that, didn’t he? These little creatures were things they could summon… ‘Familiars’, was it? In all truth, she should have been more surprised; however, Sora just blinked, staring at the little creature without a twinkle in her eye. With the events as of late, this was hardly a thing of concern.

The little, black voidling unhooked its claws from the ceiling and fluttered away, disappearing from the room without another sound, silent as it departed. Sora set her pen inside her notebook before quietly closing it. She rose from where she was seated on the floor, placing her hand on the coffee table to balance herself. It had been a few days, though she remained somewhat weak since that… incident.

She walked over to the couch, where Shuu was peacefully sleeping. Somehow, they ended up in a silent agreement, that they would share this room. Considering recent events, Sora didn’t mind. Being with Shuu was probably the safest, knowing his brothers had no qualms about eating her. He was silent and napped in her presence, so at least she didn’t have to deal with him.

“Shuu,” Sora called out to him. She was about to reach for him, out of a careless habit, to gently shake him awake; however, she quickly stopped herself, deciding that touching him was unwise. With one arm behind his head and the other curled over his tummy, face in a peaceful expression, he looked undeniably handsome. All it really did was irritate her. “Hey, Shuu. Get up. It’s time for dinner,” she said, a little more loudly than her previous call out to him.

The blonde haired vampire moved a little, just barely wiggling around on the couch. His brow twitched and his lip curled downward. For a moment, she expected he was going to rise; however, instead, Shuu spoke. “Edgar, be quiet, or the wolves will hear you…”

Sora stared down at the pureblood, her head tilting slightly in confusion. What had he called her…? Edgar? No… It wasn’t aimed at her. Was he dreaming? Considering that he went silent after that statement, Sora became confident that he was still unconscious and was merely talking in his sleep. But… who was-…?

[ …Edgar…? ]


	9. You Should Fear Me

He was dreaming… wasn’t he? A dream that was less of a dream and more of a memory, shrouded in the misty veil of the past. Yet, as the scene unraveled before him, Shuu’s consciousness didn’t fully recognize the events as a dream. In that moment, he was living it all over again. He drifted far, far away from reality, to a time when things were… different.

“Edgar, be quiet,” Shuu suddenly whispered, his tone uncharacteristically harsh. The taller boy suddenly smacked his jaw shut, staring in shock at the blonde haired boy before him. Shuu’s serious expression was enough to make him go silent, though his words were just as startling. “Don’t be so loud,” the vampire explained. “…or the wolves will hear you.”

Edgar’s confused face melted away and a look of understanding graced his features. He nodded at Shuu before making a strange gesture with his hand. He pressed the pads of his index and middle finger together and then slid his nails against his lips, before flicking his hand in a random direction. Shuu’s eyes followed that direction before turning back to Edgar, his brow raised curiously.

The darker haired boy stared back at Shuu, a small smile forming as he realized in that moment that the smaller boy was confused by that gesture. It was not that surprising, seeing as many things went over Shuu’s head, something he had learned in the short time they were together. Shuu didn’t smile back, but simply blinked, unsure of what on earth the human was doing. Rather, Edgar found himself unable to stifle a brief and quiet laugh.

Shuu’s fears were immediately realized. A loud snarl sounded from behind Edgar. The boy’s laughter stopped and he gasped, jolting away from where he stood. Edgar tripped and hit the ground with a thump, landing at Shuu’s feet. He quickly rolled over onto his back and kicked his feet, sliding away from the bushes.

Beasts that walked along four legs, massive and covered in thick, matted hair approached. They weren’t average wolves. Shuu could recognize dire wolves by scent alone. They were clearly feral, likely having been abandoned by their pack leader ages ago. They shoved their way through the thick brush and out into the opening, approaching the boys, snarling with fangs extended intimidatingly.

Shuu heard Edgar’s frightened sounds, but didn’t pay much mind to it. He didn’t stagger from his spot and stood his ground, even when the beasts got uncomfortably close. “This isn’t your woods. Leave!” Shuu commanded, shouting at the beasts in a firm tone. His sapphire orbs narrowed, his gaze firm and unwavering, staring into the eyes of the largest of the bunch. It understood and, just like that, turned sharply on its clawed paws, and jolted away. The others followed immediately, leaving behind the faint sound of rustling brush, before silence ensued.

Edgar jumped to his feet and all-but tackled Shuu. The vampire staggered and gasped as Edgar’s arms fell over his shoulders. “Woah! Shuu, that was amazing! How did-… Geez. You’re so weird! HA!” Edgar cheered, his voice echoing in Shuu’s ear. It was strange, being touched by this mortal. Yet, Shuu didn’t try to push him off. Rather, it was comforting, in some indescribable way.

“Don’t mention it,” Shuu replied, turning his head to look at the taller boy behind him. “Gaaahhh! I thought we were goners!” Edgar bellowed, releasing Shuu to fall back into the grass. Shuu turned around and looked at Edgar, wondering why he was behaving so frantically. Was he really that scared? They were just wolves: nothing to cause a fuss over. Ah. But… wolves could kill humans, couldn’t they? He knew that, but-… Had he forgotten, briefly, that Edgar was human? Or, maybe, loss track of what made them different.

“Just… Um. Maybe you should stay out of the woods?” Shuu suggested, suddenly feeling this wave of unease. He didn’t understand it; but, he felt troubled, fearful of what would have happened to his companion, had he not been here. “You sound like my mom, Shuu!” Edgar teased, though Shuu just stared at him, baffled as to why he would suggest just a thing. “Aaaaaalright. I did wander too far. But, if I didn’t, I wouldn’t a’met cha’!” the human chimed.

Edgar stood up and dusted himself off, patting his palms against his pants and shirt. “I better go… Hey, we should meet up again! You can teach me your wolf repelling secret!” There wasn’t a way that Shuu could possibly do that; however, he decided to smile at Edgar’s joke, feeling it was an appropriate response to the big, goofy smile on the human’s face. Edgar turned his back and started retreating, heading for the village he called home. The forests faded away before consciousness steadily returned to Shuu.

The vampire groaned quietly, turning his head to the side until his cheek brushed against the soft cushion of the couch. His eyes fluttered open, just in time to see the woman’s back before she exited the room, closing the door quietly behind her. Had she been trying to wake him…? That seemed like a likely possibility. Though, Shuu didn’t bother pondering why that would be. He simply rolled over and rested his opposite cheek on the couch, turning his back towards the door.

“Why would I be dreaming about this…?” he thought to himself. He couldn’t even recall how long ago it was that he had thought about Edgar, let alone dreamt about the past. Never the less, it didn’t stop him from slipping right back into unconsciousness. Besides… did it really matter anymore?

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After setting her writing materials in her bedroom, Sora quietly trotted down the stairs, heading for the dining room. She was hesitant when she entered, seeing as she was not accompanied with Shuu. As she peaked through the archway entering the dining area, she saw that Reiji was standing there, addressing one of the servants. The man almost looked like a creature, just staring at Reiji with a dead look in his eye. He was standing up perfectly straight, in an almost inhuman fashion, and was dressed in a fancy suit with his hands gloved and his hair nicely gelled.

“Ah. You’re here,” Reiji commented as he turned to face Sora. He looked at her sternly from behind the slight glare of his glasses. “You didn’t bring that good for nothing?” he asked, voice lowering. But, then, his tone quickly changed as he added, “fine, then. We’ll do without him. Sit wherever you’d like…” As his words trailed off, Reiji turned his attention to the servant, watching the man sternly as he set the table.

As he instructed, Sora sat down, deciding to take the seat closest to the archway exiting the room. She didn’t overthink it; but, maybe there was some comfort in that spot. She tried to keep her eyes to herself, but found it even more odd to stare down at the table than to look around.

The man walked swiftly around the table, laying out plates at each chair. They were large, square-shaped and porcelain, shiny white and flawless as if they have never been used before. The silverware was not set down, but laid wrapped in white cloth. A black ribbon adorned the outside, holding the bundle together.

“All this preparation for just dinner…?” Sora thought to herself. Shortly after she sat down, Reiji exited the room, heading into the kitchen. “Maybe I should have worked harder to wake up Shuu,” she mentally pondered, considering the possibility that this was a special event. She had eaten in here alone plenty of times; yet, Reiji’s presence alone created an atmosphere.

It was not long before Reiji returned, pushing a cart. There was a large glass dome in the center, shielding whatever the main entree happened to be. Various plates and bowls surrounded the dome. At a glance, Sora could tell they were sides.

“I imagine you’ve never been served like this?” Reiji suggested, releasing the cart’s handle. The servant immediately strutted over and stood next to the cart, as if prepared to serve the food. Sora didn’t answer, but the dark haired vampire continued. “As delicately as possible, tap your fork against your glass if you desire the servant’s services…”

Sora’s eyes peered nervously to where Reiji stood, though she wasn’t looking directly at him. She listened as best as she could as he explained the proper way to eat; however, she knew that her attention had faltered. Place your napkin there… elbows off the table… It was so unlike her and yet, he seemed determined that she follow his commands.

Oddly, she was freed when another brother entered the room. “Bitch-chan,” Laito purred, teleporting to the space on her left. “Being alone with Reiji must have been so boring,” he suggested, snickering quietly, before sliding into the seat beside her. “As unpleasant as ever, I see,” Reiji replied, removing himself from where he stood to find a place to sit.

Mere seconds after Laito’s arrival, the others entered, one by one, all but Shuu. Sora was quiet where she sat, watching them all as they strolled in carelessly and plopped down wherever. The servant started serving them immediately, moving swiftly and without falter. Over all, it was a very elegant and well put together meal. Though, Sora’s jumbled thoughts weren’t focused too much on the food.

She watched with curious eyes as the brothers interacted with each other. There was an odd tension that floated around the room, though the boys bickered and argued like normal brothers: Ayato taunted Subaru’s eating habits, Reiji scolded Kanato for the mess of crumbs, and Laito occasionally jabbed at Ayato’s pride, making comments that ‘eating a lot of meat wouldn’t make him bigger’. The occasional yelling was immediately silenced by Reiji. Sora merely stared on at the spectacle.

“Bitch-chan couldn’t get Shuu to come?” Laito commented, his tone rather suggestive. “Gh. Keep your thoughts to yourself, you disgusting-” Subaru began, being cut off by Laito. Quickly, the red head mocked, “jealous, Subaru?” He immediately barked back, “-of what!?” It was at that point that Reiji decided to intervene, merely commenting, “enough from both of you… and you,” he paused, his eyes focusing on Sora to ensure she knew he was talking about her. “…answer firmly, otherwise you sit there like a mindless halfwit.”

He had barked at her to answer firmly, yet even then Sora was hesitant before saying, “right…” Being in their company at the same time, especially when she considered recent events, was bizarre. She felt so uneasy. At least, however, it went, overall, very smoothly. Before long, everyone had finished and were shuffling back to their bedrooms.

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After finishing dinner, Sora promptly returned to her bedroom. As she walked back to her room, she considered gathering her notebook again and, this time, heading out to the gardens. From the window in her bedroom, she could see a glimpse of the gardens to the far right corner, beyond the stretch of perfectly trimmed grass. From what she could tell, it looked like a rose garden; she could make out the shapes of rose bushes and spiraling, white petals. While she has wandered some of the grounds, she had yet to explore the garden. Perhaps, there was something mystical about it that was almost frightening to her.

Sora walked through her bedroom door and quietly shut it behind her. It was in the process of approaching her desk that she realized something was odd. There was a strange noise, like a powerful pounding sound, quietly echoing from a distance. She stopped moving, standing in the center of her bedroom to try and listen a little more clearly.

“Wha-…?” she whispered to herself, staring blindly into space as she tried to get a grasp on whatever the noise could be. A thought crossed her mind: that the noise sounded faintly like running water, or maybe water pounding on something. With that possibility in mind, Sora trotted her way to the bathroom and roughly opened the door. She suspected she would open the door to an empty, black room; however, to her dismay, the lights were on and the tub’s faucet was on full blast.

Water loudly poured into the claw-footed tub in the center of the room. It was completely full to the brim with water. The water continued to spew, pouring out the edge of the tub and splashing loudly onto the tiled floor. Ignoring the fact that she was still wearing her shoes, Sora nearly sprinted to the faucet, turning it as quickly as she could to make the water stop running.

“G-geez… Why was this on…?” she sighed once she managed to get the water to stop flowing. As her eyes moved along the rim of the tub, about to glance at the mess of water that had splashed onto the floor, Sora caught the sight of something beneath the surface. A body, dressed mostly in blue, was laying in the bottom of the tub. His back was arched slightly, legs shoulder-width apart, and blonde locks danced around his head.

“Kh – wha – Shuu!” Sora sputtered, gawking at the sight of him in her tub. Panic welled up inside her and, without thinking, she reached into the tub, soaking her arms and chest. She clung to Shuu and tugged him up. Having been sound asleep and suddenly jerked awake, Shuu jolted somewhat just as Sora tugged him up. His forehead roughly slammed against her brow, knocking Sora back and releasing him from her grasp.

Shuu awkwardly sunk back into the tub while Sora landed with on the tile a ‘plop’. “Ghhh,” she groaned, her dominant hand falling against her skull. There was a throbbing pain in her head, right where Shuu’s collided with her. She remained on the floor for a second, now soaking wet, before awkwardly climbing to her feet.

“W-what are you-?!” she roared, finding that the pain in her head had resulted in enraging her and temporarily blinding her to the reality of the situation. She reached into the water, possibly to pull him out again; however, just as her hands fell upon his shirt, Shuu reached out of the water and wrapped his arms around her mid-section. He tugged her harshly, until her abdomen rutted against the edge of the tub. With the momentum of his pull, Sora’s upper half dipped into the tub and her legs swung over the edge. There was a loud splash and a wave of water spewed over the edge and crashed to the floor.

With her body awkwardly slouching against Shuu, hurting in several places, Sora groaned, though still shuffled around, trying to gain some footing. Shuu’s hands roughly fell upon her biceps, keeping her in place. “What are you doing in my bathroom!? –and in this tub!?” she roared, hands pushing against his chest. Her eyes finally fell upon his face and saw the subtle, yet frightening glare he had placed upon her.

“Not only do you interrupt my bath, you slam your head against mine?” he growled lowly, his face close to hers. Sora was leaning up slightly, gaining a few inches on Shuu. With their legs tangled beneath the water, and her heavy from the weight of her soaked clothing, Sora was helpless to move much.

She pushed against him, trying to create some distance. “You have your own bathroom and – and obviously that was an accident – let go!” she whaled, wincing when his hands squeezed at her arms. “I’m so tired, and to always have this annoying voice waking me up…” Shuu mumbled, eyes fixated on her pained expression. “I can go where I want. This is my house, after all…”

Sora’s jaw locked up, teeth grinding as she struggled pathetically against him. It was unpleasant; she could feel his body brushing against hers beneath the water and his firm grip held her close. “You say that… b-but you chose my bathroom,” she argued, attempting to glare at him, though she somehow knew how ridiculous it must have looked.

“This is a guest room, inside this mansion… It’s no different than my own room,” Shuu retorted quietly, speaking in a tired voice, as though he cared little to argue with her. Maybe, she would have refuted more, but Shuu began pulling on her. “Whether you’re just stupid… or a woman who seeks pain… is to be decided,” the vampire whispered, his cheek sliding against hers as his head descended.

“W-wha – how is that releva-…” Sora’s words trailed away, perhaps giving up early for she already knew what he intended to do. “You interrupted my dream… Take responsibility for that… the only thing of value you have will suffice,” he whispered, before promptly inviting himself to her body. She didn’t make much of a sound, but trembled when she felt those fangs. Up until that point, the water had felt incredibly warm; however, the longer he drank her blood, the colder the water seemed to get.

When he parted, he exhaled heavily, careless to the few droplets of blood that slipped past his lip and trailed down his chin. He leaned back for a moment and looked at Sora. Her eyes were squeezed shut and her bottom lip was curled beneath her teeth, trying to be quiet. When he paused, her eyes opened and she looked at him.

That half-lidded expression almost contradicted the annoyance he expressed moments ago; however, when he spoke again, it seemed oddly fitting. “Are you afraid…? You should fear me… Maybe… maybe then, you’ll stop reaching for me.” Sora winced, closing her eyes when he leaned in. A choked sound broke free when his fangs entered her once more. “What are you-… you’re in my-… I-… didn’t…” echoed within her thoughts, trying to get a grip on what was happening. Her hands clawed into his shoulders, though she gave up trying to break free long ago.

[ He wasn’t entirely false… I was afraid, but-… I made myself as quiet as could be for a different reason. I was… unsure of what kind of noises I would make. That night… Shuu’s fangs felt… different. At this moment… I don’t know what I mean by that ]


	10. Her Place

When she crawled into bed that night, Sora mocked herself for steadily becoming accustomed to her new lifestyle. She thought that doing so would make her laugh and maybe make the situation a little less bleak; though, it didn’t. Rather, it made her question her own sanity, for perhaps the hundredth time since she arrived at the Sakamaki mansion.

After drinking enough blood to satisfy himself, Shuu climbed out of the tub and, soaking wet, walked himself out of her room. She slumped against the edge of the tub and watched, almost perplexed, as his soaked body casually walked out of the room. Shuu had carried on as if nothing was wrong, not even suggesting drying off, and left a trail behind him as he noisily left her presence.

After she herself shed the soaking wet clothes, dried, and changed into something comfortable, Sora tossed towels onto the carpet, hoping she could dry it a bit. Part of her wondered how Reiji would react to the mess Shuu left in the hallway. Even though Shuu was the oldest, she would have to be dumb, deaf, and blind to not know Reiji was in charge. The extent of that, she didn’t know; but, he definitely asserted himself as the lead authority… or tried to. It was strange… another thing about this place that had caught her curiosity, but she decided to be silent about it.

Sora laid in bed for the longest time, to the point that the sun began to shine bright, orange, morning light through the curtains covering her window. Shuu was the oldest, and exerted his authority as such… over her, to make the situation less delicate. Though, he didn’t care to exert much authority over anything else… aside from occasionally barking at his brothers to silence themselves. He was so careless and it still amazed her.

Twice, she caught him sinking himself. Why would he fill up her bathtub, less he wanting her to catch him? Shuu couldn’t really be that eager to upset her…? Maybe he intended things to go differently, for his anger at her seemed unfitting… or maybe it wasn’t. She, for the life of her, couldn’t figure him out. He would drink her blood, as if declaring some sort of dominance, before prancing away and ignoring her for days.

Perhaps, then… that was just… how vampires were? Or, maybe, that was just how the strange, blonde-haired vampire was? That was not the full extent of her thoughts, however; Sora began to fear what that meant for her. Would she ever leave this place? That… was the scariest thought that night, more so than Shuu’s fangs.

School carried on, of course, like nothing was wrong with her life. She had to attend, just like the rest of them, and was even obligated to do well. Reiji made that fact perfectly clear while slapping his riding crop into his palm, indicating he wouldn’t mind beating her if she got out of line. Sora had nodded at the time, wondering if he really would, knowing she wasn’t his. Regardless, she didn’t want to find out.

“I must have a stupid face,” Sora mumbled to herself as she walked down the hall. She was walking with some binders pressed against her chest, curled in her arms. Somehow, time and time again, she ended up stuck with some ridiculous duty: dropping off paperwork, rearranging files, the list went on. She was always given these duties and she had simply come to the conclusion that her face read: I’m a moron, make me do things. It was not as though she could say ‘no’.

For this evening, her teacher had requested she drop off these empty binders in the nurse’s office, seeing as said nurse was out for the day. She didn’t think much on it and just entered the room, using her hip to awkwardly open the door, and carelessly strutted inside. Seeing as the nurse was gone, it was only natural she expected an empty room.

Sora walked over to the white cabinets and countertop where the nurse stored paperwork and simple equipment. She set the binders down on the nearest available surface, sliding them back so they weren’t resting so close to the edge. The one on top slid as soon as she let go and clattered to the floor, making annoyingly loud plastic noises.

Sighing quietly, Sora reached for the binder, bending her knees slightly. As she did so, she saw something fall from the other side of the white curtain. An object loudly clanked to the floor, falling right beneath the two-inch gap between the floor and the curtain. Immediately, Sora recognized it as a black heel: a fancy, leather stiletto, to be exact. While reaching for the binder, she froze, suddenly realizing there was movement on the other side of the curtain. The white fabric fluttered slightly and she knew there was no breeze in here. Faintly, she heard, “R-Ruki… ah-ahh…”

Stupid face or otherwise, she definitely didn’t have a stupid head. Her cheeks turned red at the realization of what was happening on the other side of the curtain. Quickly, Sora snatched the binder off the floor and set it on the counter. Careless to whether or not she was quiet, especially seeing that she already dropped something, Sora made a quick retreat, leaving the room as quickly as possible. She didn’t even care if the door properly shut, just letting it slowly glide half-way closed on its own.

“Ghhh! Gross! -the hell is wrong with these people!?” she thought to herself, thoughts echoing in her head as she stomped away. She had returned to class, perhaps a bit too eagerly, and plopped down in her seat, ignoring the eyes that briefly stared at her. At that moment, she merely hoped that if he heard her, he didn’t know it was her. That was attention she simply didn’t need.

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For the grace of her schedule, Sora was allowed a prep period a couple times a week. She was thankful for it, since it allowed more time at school to complete homework and gave her access to the library. This academy was not like her previous high school. They weren’t particularly stricter, but their curriculum was definitely more advanced. She had not been here for half a semester and already feared slipping behind.

It was more than just Reiji’s blatant threats at her wellbeing that pushed her to try harder. She was striving for the thought of what would follow after… all this. Her dreams of moving onto bigger and better places was all she had to hold onto for now. Maybe… maybe someday she would be able to look her mother in the eye and tell her of how successful she was.

As usual, she decided to spend her free time in the library. In return, all the librarian asked was help putting the books away, which was relatively easy. She would march down the rows with a handful of books tucked under her arm and swiftly nudged them into their proper spot. Each had a genre and a number, and rather quickly, she became familiar with where they went. It also gave her special insight to what the library had in its collection. It was definitely much larger and more expansive than a normal high school library.

With just a few books left, Sora grabbed the remainder off the shelf and trotted down the aisles. Most students were in class now, leaving her almost alone, which was fairly nice considering the silence it provided. She was eager to finish since she had accidentally found something rather appealing and wanted to quickly check it out and start reading.

It was a writing book, something far beyond the level she was accustomed to; however, it was exciting to read the memoires of an old writer and his intake on why certain words and expression held more power than others. Besides, these books often provided wonderful mental notes for future thought and taught her word usage in manners she never considered before.

After having the librarian scan the book, Sora retreated to the far back of the library, intent on looking for a comfortable place to sit. As she strolled by, someone casually stepped in front of her. Sora’s eyes glanced at the black tie, un-buttoned blouse, and mahogany undershirt. She didn’t even have to see his face to know who it was.

“Livestock, you’re attending to the books, now, aren’t you?” he asked her. Sora’s eyes trailed up until she was locked in Ruki’s firm gaze. His eyes weren’t just colored like steel, but stared at her just as coldly as metal. If that wasn’t hard enough, she immediately recalled what she accidentally caught him doing less than an hour ago… Or who, to be less specific. Though, she tried to pretend that she didn’t.

Before she could answer, he mumbled, “oh…” Sora blinked slowly, before mumbling back, “huh?” Ruki then pointed at the book she was holding against her chest. “I was going to ask you where that was; but, it seems you’re already invested in it,” he explained. “Yeah,” Sora said slowly, unsure of what else to say to him.

“That’s an odd choice…” he commented loosely, almost mockingly, though she would have had to really consider that. Feeling the urge to defend herself a little, Sora quickly explained, “I like to write, and this seemed helpful… and maybe good for college, too… new insight…” Ruki’s brow curled slightly, though it was a subtle shift in his expression. “Is that so…? What a bizarre desire for a livestock.”

His words, oddly, rattled Sora to the very bone. There was some implication in his manner of speaking, in the slight arch in his voice when he commented on her goals. She couldn’t resist the urge to poke at him. “What is that supposed to mean?” Right after she asked that question, Ruki placed his hand on his hip, while his other hand lifted to adjust his tie. “I find cheeky livestock amusing. Sooner or later… you’ll have to realize it…”

Having been done with speaking to her, Ruki walked around Sora and made his departure. For a moment, she stood there in the middle of the library, staring blindly into space as those few words echoed in her mind. “Realize what…?” she thought to herself. What was frightening was not his implication, but that… deep down… she knew the answer.

Later that night, after finishing her homework and making a failed attempt at studying, Sora tiptoed her way down the stairs and into the kitchen, hoping that none of Shuu’s brother, or Shuu for that matter, would be down there. For a little while, she enjoyed solitude in the kitchen. Normally, that would have been a wonderful thing; however, that night, Sora stood in front of the sink, her hands resting limply on the edge of the counter, and she stared blindly into the mosaic tile in front of her.

Rather quickly, it had clicked in her mind that her behavior was not normal. Her tummy was aching dully with hunger; however, at the same time, her throat clenched unpleasantly at the thought of eating. The reasoning part of her demanded that she eat while her emotional side rattled her brain and left her stomach churning. Had it finally dug so deep that she-

“Miss Yasutake,” a firm voice suddenly spoke out, demanding her attention in a quiet, yet harsh tone. Sora spun around, her lower back gently pressing against the edge of the counter, though her hands now rested limply in front of her. Reiji was staring at her from across the kitchen, an odd expression on his face. She would have, perhaps, considered it a concerned expression, though it was not very sincere.

“What are you doing? If you’re going to eat, make it quick.” Reiji walked over to the counters on Sora’s right. He reached to the higher cabinet to retrieve a glass. Sora stepped out of the way of the sink, figuring he was going to get some water from the filtered tap. As he filled his glass, Sora dared to ask what it was that had been bothering her.

“Reiji… I want to know how long I’m staying here…” Reiji didn’t immediately answer as he began to drink from the glass he just filled. That gave Sora the opportunity to continue, hoping that she sounded intelligent when she spoke. “I understand that I’m receiving living commodities in return for… blood, but-”

The vampire stopped drinking specifically to interrupt her. “You don’t understand if that’s the conclusion you’ve drawn,” he explained, speaking simply, as though it was as plain as the weather. “You aren’t food in return for some basic commodities. Heh. But, I do find it amusing that you would think so. If your chosen master was not so lacking in diligence, perhaps you would know better by now…”

Reiji paused in order to take another sip of his glass. Sora stared, nearly gawking in shock at Reiji as he explained. When he stopped, he continued, drawing out every word as if to taunt her. “You’re a sacrifice… Who knows when you’ll leave; it seems that will be… whenever your soul departs? To think that you suspect we would let you go… Even if such arrangements were made, where do you think you would go? You have no one to go back to… You belong to us now.”


	11. What You Can't Change

[ I had copied Reiji’s words in my head and played them over and over again, as though they were written on a CD. I had always figured that he was not the type to joke around for the sake of his own amusement; yet, there was some odd fascination I saw in his eyes, as if there was some sense of pleasure in putting me in my place, albeit with mere words. ]

[ He had been quick to correct me in my assumption that this place was temporary. The word ‘sacrifice’ had been used, and not for the very first time; however, this time, I think, it felt even more powerful than before. But then… I think I know why that is. ]

[ Plainly, he explained that even if I was set free, there was not a soul awaiting me… not a person to miss me. I knew he was talking about my mother. There was no one else to speak of, after all. I had to wonder… what had happened to her? ]

[ I had been left to wonder… to ponder at the possibility that she was dead. Is that why-…? That seemed like a reasonable suggestion, didn’t it? Why else would it be so easy for me to stay here forever… if no one was looking for me… Would they kill her… for my sake? I can’t imagine… Maybe it was a mere gut feeling, but I don’t believe I was a prime pick. It was too hasty… too suddenly. ]

[ Or… maybe… the answer was clearer: she wasn’t looking for me. I suppose, in the end, I’ll never truly know… No matter the answer, it seems undeniable that I… I’m inevitably… going to die here… as prey. ]

With her thoughts less focused on reality, Sora failed to see the giant standing in front of her. He was unmoving, standing with his hands on his hips, watching in amusement as she approached with a blind look in her eye. He didn’t even move when she senselessly bumped into him. Sora’s body bounced off of his and she staggered back a few steps.

“O-oh, Yuma… Sorry…” Sora mumbled after being tossed back into reality. She took a few more steps away from him, unable to prevent herself from realizing that she was standing in his shadow. The light fixture on the ceiling was right behind his head; the light was glimmering between the strands of his golden locks.

“What’s so important ya’ can’t pay attention, sow?” he immediately questioned her, his head angled downwards to look at her. Sora didn’t immediately answer, humming for a moment as she tried to quickly ponder a good response. However, Yuma started talking again before she could make an utterance.

“You didn’t forget, didja? The neet…” Yuma stared at Sora, expecting some solid answer from her. With her neck angled back somewhat, she stared up at him, just for a moment in a haze as she was confused by his words; however, quickly, she remembered what it was that Yuma had demanded of her: he had wanted to know things about Shuu. Things to help him remember, right…? She hadn’t pressed him too hard about that. Yet, how could she, when he stood so intimidatingly before her every chance he got?

“Look, Yuma, I don’t know what your thing is with Shuu, but-… I don’t have anything to say about him,” Sora explained, quickly. “I better go.” She moved to step around Yuma, though his large frame managed to block her from the stairs. There was no one behind him, so he had no reason to move, beyond her staring up at him, brow lowering slightly with irritation.

“So, then, you’re as useless as before? Tch.” Yuma glanced away from her for a moment, his eyes narrowing somewhat as he glared at the wall. She could tell her was thinking, maybe wondering what to rattle her brain with. Sora’s lip curled in disdain as his choice of words, though she remained quiet. Her expression softened, out of instinct, when he looked back at her.

“Hm… Maybe not… You’ve come to your senses, right? That’s why you look so stupid… walkin’ around with your head low,” Yuma suggested, his lip twisting into a faint, though unpleasant grin. Sora’s lips pressed together, as if trying to keep herself from scowling at him, even though he was correct. Had he been waiting for her to accept her demise? “Ya’ get it, then? They recruited ya’ for food! So, then… Give up those Sakamaki rats. You’d be more suitable as my prey.”

His suggestion was hardly any different than the first time; however, Sora’s reaction and mood was quite different. Last time, she had practically yelled at his face. Yet, this time, Sora stared at Yuma with a blank expression, silent as her mind soared. It was not that she, necessarily, was considering his proposition. Would being Yuma’s prey be any different…? That wasn’t what had made her falter: it was the mere fact that her entire existence had been reduced to belonging to one vampire… versus another.

“Heh. Can’t decide? Then… I’ll let me fangs do the talking…” Yuma approached Sora, his hand reaching for her. Out of instinct, she flinched and slapped the back of her hand against his wrist, deflecting his advances. For a moment, she went still, frozen as if expecting some sort of outburst from the large vampire; however, he was staring at her, as if quite amused. “I don’t want…” Sora began, only to trail away into nothing. She didn’t want-…. what, exactly?

“Ehhh? What is it then!? Ya’ hate belonin’ to them or do ya’ enjoy being aristocrat bait?” Yuma barked at her, demanding an answer. Yet, Sora wasn’t quite sure what it was that made her reaction in such a way. Was she afraid of Yuma? Maybe. But, more so, she definitely didn’t want him biting her. Not another vampire…

That was when Shuu crossed her mind. Had the lazy, blonde haired vampire really been impacting her decision…? Maybe more so than she cared to admit. She hardly knew Shuu at all behind the blank stare he gave her, and the feel of his form when he indulged in her blood. Strangely, or maybe not so, the thought of feeling someone else’s fangs… was even more frightening than Shuu’s bite alone.

“Geez, sow,” Yuma exhaled his words heavily. “So affectionate towards ya’r captor?” Having unintentionally trailed her eyes away, Sora immediately snapped her gaze back to Yuma when she heard that claim. She couldn’t tell by his expression if he was kidding… or serious. The implication, alone, made her uneasy: affection towards… Shuu?

“Whatever. You’ve been marked up and stink, anyway…” This time, it was Yuma’s turn to step around Sora, leaving her standing at the halfway section of the stairs. “Don’t falter next time!” he, almost casually, demanded, tossing the words over his shoulder as he walked off. It was then that a thought crossed her mind, like being struck by lightning. Before Yuma could reach the bottom of the stairs, Sora called out to him. “Yuma… who is Edgar…?”

The large vampire froze, his feet on the third step up from the floor. He was still, his jacket hanging off one of his shoulders and his hands buried in his pockets. Yuma stared down the hall, unblinking for a moment as some odd sensation overcame him. That name, being called out to him in a feminine voice, had shaken him to the core. He almost couldn’t deny to himself that it felt all too familiar; at the same time… he had no idea who she was talking about.

“…why are you asking me…?” he mumbled carelessly before shrugging and trotting down the hall, leaving her alone at the stairs. Yuma wanted to believe it was nothing short of a coincidence; and yet, that name brought him back to a much darker place… from a long, long time ago.

That late night was typical for the Sakamaki household. Sora came home and proceeded to finishing the little bit of homework that remained before tiptoeing down the stairs to the kitchen in order to fetch a snack. Luckily, everyone seemed too preoccupied to notice her. She had heard Laito and Ayato bickering from down the hall, though they did not stop long enough to notice her presence, hopefully.

After eating, she had strolled into the study, with the intention to drown herself in the book she had checked out the previous day. The room, oddly, felt stuffy to her, likely due to it recently being cleaned, which had worked well to lead her out onto the large balcony from the glass, double doors. To her surprise, and dismay, Shuu was slumped on the only bench, his back pressed against the stone railing, with his arms crossed over his chest. His eyes were shut, a peaceful expression on his face, and Sora could hear the faint humming of violin and piano music spewing from his earbuds.

He had yet to even change out of his school uniform, which hardly surprised her. She wondered if, perhaps, he had staggered out her as soon as the limousine dropped them off. For a moment, she pondered the idea of joining Shuu on the bench; however, somehow, she imagined, doing so would have been unwise. He didn’t enjoy her presence, after all. Maybe, then, going elsewhere would have been for the best; however, Shuu had beckoned to her before she even turned away.

“Oi… Why do you keep following me?” he lazily commented, his tone low and a bit quiet, almost inaudible through the gentle breeze and sounds of nighttime wildlife. With the dark woods almost in arms reach, the sound of crickets chirping and owls hooting created something like a symphony: like a faint, peaceful background noise. Sora approached the vampire, taking smooth, yet somehow cautious, steps.

“I didn’t know you were out here,” Sora explained, looking down at the vampire with tired eyes. “Is that so…?” Shuu mumbled, not even moving from his spot on the bench. For a moment, Sora’s brown orbs were fixated on the vampire, as if memorizing the outlines and curvatures of his face. Even Sora could admit, though never aloud, that Shuu was handsome… to an extent that was rather unnatural when she really thought about it. Maybe, him being a vampire, then, shouldn’t really have surprised her at all. No human could look… quite like that.

Barely a minute had rolled by and the quiet noise that spewed from Shuu’s earbuds had died down as the song came to an end. Shuu finally opened his eyes, greeting Sora with his sapphire orbs. It was bizarre how that blue subtly shimmered through the darkness, like lures attracting a fish.

He uncrossed his arms, groaning quietly, before saying to her, “rather than staring at me, make yourself useful…” Shuu reached for her, wrapping his large hand around her arm and tugging on her so she fell forward, against him. “…so cold…” he mumbled whilst attempting to drag her into his lap. In the tumble, Sora spun around before yelping quietly.

She ended up planted between Shuu’s parted legs. Her behind was on the bench, though her back was pressed against Shuu’s chest and her legs were pinned against his, on the inside of his thighs. “H-hey…” she weakly protested. For a moment, it was reasonable, until she felt Shuu slump forward and let nearly all his weight collapse on top of her. His head fell into her shoulder and his arms wrapped around her mid-section. “Ghh! Shuu, stop that…!” she protested, wiggling around helplessly in his grasp. “Agh! Let go! You’re freezing!”

“Shut up…” the vampire mumbled tiredly, his hands venturing beneath her blouse to slide along her abdomen. His fingers felt like ice cold, metal bars sliding against her. Had Shuu been sitting out here for hours? Perhaps, then, it wasn’t just that he had not changed his clothes, but that he had been slumping out here since school ended. While his skin was undeniably soft, it was as cold as an unliving statue.

Telling him to stop was pointless, though that didn’t stop her from trying to nudge his hands to more appropriate places. She had only one hand to use, however, as her other was still holding the book she had been intending to read. When she felt his cheek press against the side of her neck, the sudden cold startled her. Sora flinched and the book flung from her grasp and landed on the floor.

“Oh… Hm…” Shuu hummed, going still for just a moment. That gave Sora the chance to turn her head and look back at him. Perhaps, she intended to scold him; however, instead, she found herself silent, staring at Shuu’s calm expression. She couldn’t read that expression or make sense of whatever emotions were shifting behind his eyes; however, it became clear when his head descended.

“You’re not warm enough on the outside; but… on the inside…” His words trailed away and Sora felt the caress of his mouth on her neck, on a fresh, unblemished spot. She flinched slightly from his touch; but, his hands were firm and kept her still. She knew what was coming… and yet… she didn’t thrash about, but merely went still.

“Kh…!” Sora quietly screeched when Shuu bit down. He groaned upon feeling the texture of her flesh, parting so easily for his fangs. Blood gushed from the wound to be drained into his mouth. Sora’s hands were planted over Shuu’s wrists, though she did not attempt to push him away. She was almost perfectly still, aside from the occasional twitching of her arms or legs. As always, the sounds of him feasting echoed in her ears: gulps of her blood, quiet groans, and faint noises that resembled pleasured moans. Long, brown locks fell over Shuu’s face, getting in the way as it always did, though he didn’t bother attempting to move her hair.

Some time passed and Sora kept as quiet as she could. The sensation, as always, was bizarre to her. His fangs stung when they entered and all but vibrated inside her. His canines held her still, the firmness in such contrast to his soft lips. Her blood… as if defying her, was being drawn from her veins, flowing without restraint into Shuu’s mouth. Yet again… it left her paralyzed. Yet… the pain… Did it really hurt…? It felt-…

Shuu groaned quietly as he retracted his fangs, though his mouth remained close to the bite. “Hehe…” he laughed quietly, making Sora turn her to head to try and look at him. “That lost expression suits you. Are you enjoying yourself?” he questioned her, his tone undeniably teasing. Sora gawked at Shuu, wondering what kind of face she had been making while he drank her blood. “Why would I enjoy being eaten?” she questioned, almost barking at him.

“Because you’re a closet masochist,” Shuu bluntly replied. With his face pressed into her neck, she could hardly look back at him to snag a glance at his face. “I am not-” she began to protest, though Shuu silenced her as he continued. “Say what you want; but, your body is much warmer, now. So, then… Now…” Shuu slightly tightened his grasp on her mid-section, letting his arms slide in tighter. His head fell limp into the grove between her neck and shoulder and he exhaled pleasantly. “…I can sleep.”

Helplessly, Sora stared at the blob of blonde locks dangling over her shoulder. It was strange, but Shuu was correct, wasn’t he? She felt warmer now and so did he. His ice cold fingers now felt oddly warm against her tummy. His larger frame enveloped hers, wrapped around her in this oddly familiar manner. It made her stomach flop, to be held like this. Yet…

The human’s eyes glanced away, to where her book laid limp on the floor, the back turned upwards. So, then… This was it, then? Her hands lowered from Shuu’s wrists and fell upon her knees. Her hands slid around to gently squeeze at the bones, as if trying to comfort herself. She felt her eyes stinging and an odd wheeze drew from her lips. Her dominant hand immediately lifted to cover her mouth. It was odd… As she stared down at the book on the floor, she felt as if her whole world was crumbling. She was going to be food until the day she died.


	12. Strange Thoughts

As typical of most nights at the mansion, it was chilly outside. Being snuggled up in bed was a thought; though, for some odd reason, in that particular moment, being cramped in his bedroom sounded suffocating, more suffocating than the bottom of the pool he often sunk into. The property was massive, so there was no reason he couldn’t enjoy some peace and quiet away from the annoyances that dwelled inside. As such, Shuu laid in the grass in the back gardens, surrounded by rose bushes.

When the wind picked up, the grass blew around him, soft blades brushing against his neck and jaw. With his earbuds in, the wind’s gentle howling and the rustling of brush and tree branches was muffled almost entirely, instead replaced by the singing of violins, pianos, cellos, and other instruments.

The wind also carried the fresh, earthly smell of the rose bushes. They were seeded from roses bred from the demon world. As such, the roses were especially sweet, and smelt more fruitful and lively than any other flower produced in this realm. Only vampires could grow such stunning plants, and only vampires could smell such a beautiful aroma. They were pure white, almost so bright that they shined through the darkness, petals catching the moonlight like pearly, sparkling skin.

Despite the powerful scent of the roses, another smell still lingered, a smell he had hoped the rose bushes would be powerful enough to mask. Laying there in the grass, Shuu was not particularly surprised to find that he was false and the smell of the woman was still present on him. It had been hours since he feasted upon her – since he held her still within his grasp - yet she still lingered. This was not an accident of freshly picked skin, the flesh of someone not yet tainted by a vampire. Every single time he indulged in her, her scent and the metallic sweetness of her blood lingered. It was baffling, to say the least.

“You’re more intrusive than I expected,” the pureblood mumbled to himself. Flat on his back, Shuu stared up at the night sky, his arms crossed lazily behind his head. Since he had begun to take advantage of his new prey, drinking from her more and more frequently and indulging in her life-force, something in his life changed. His sleeps became interrupted with frequent dreams. They were more than just dreams or vague symbols, but he recognized them as memories. Did humans have such recollections, such detailed thoughts…? He didn’t know…

“Is it because of you?” he whispered to himself, mumbling tiredly and almost carelessly, as if sharing his ponderance with the woman, though she was inside, far from him. He had been reliving the past more and more frequently, as of late. It was not alarming or unpleasant, but unexpected.

Sentimental… was he always that way, and just never conscious of it? Then again, he wondered if that human scent, lingering, had caused him to unconsciously think of the past. Humans were always around him, and even prey would come and go; yet, not one remained as present on him like this. Her smell… like approaching rain… took forever to leave him. Had that alone been enough to make him dwell more on a boy he once knew… so long ago?

“…annoying,” Shuu thought to himself, rolling onto his side. He lounged, a bit sloppily, albeit, until he was comfortable on the soft ground. His eyes opened for just a moment, staring ahead as if he expected something. Nothing… right… What a strange thought. His eyes fluttered shut and his thoughts dulled into numbness, and he drifted away.

A bird hollered in the distance, a strange, bellowing noise that fluctuated as the sound carried on. He recognized that sound, the noise of a calling bird, as though it was chanting to the setting sun, perhaps begging its mate to return home. That bird dwelled on a distance continent, a place he once called home: a place he had not been to in many, many years.

That bird, as it did every evening, accompanied the falling sun and rising moon. The dazzling rays of light, calling forth the coming of the darkness, were shining brightly across the woods. Trees cast shadows and cascading sunlight blared powerfully between the trunks. Of course, the little vampire was more focused on something else.

“Make sure you aim up the sights… See?” Edgar explained, leaning back and nudging the metallic instrument into Shuu’s hands. Their hands brushed together during the exchange and Edgar exclaimed, “woah! You’re freezing! Geez, Shuu.” The vampire faltered for a moment, fumbling with the weapon out of nervousness of the human boy’s proclamation. Edgar, however, was less concerned of Shuu’s temperature, and quickly grasped the gun to hold it upright. “Be more careful! It’s kinda expensive, so…”

He trailed off and Shuu nodded in understanding. “Y-yeah. I’m sorry…” Seeing that Shuu was more concentrated, Edgar released the gun, allowing him to hold it alone. Shuu mimicked the way in which his human companion held the gun only seconds ago, his hands gripping it firmly and his arms lifting it slightly. It was a strange weapon, clearly too big for him, and oddly heavy. Having now held it himself and felt its weight, he was almost amazed Edgar could hold it up by himself.

Following Edgar’s instructions, Shuu lifted the weapon until it was leveled with his shoulders. He pressed the butt against the inner curve of his shoulder, pressing firmly, before lowering his head to stare down the gun. He could see the tiny curve of concave metal, creating an indent that lined up perfectly with the far end of the barrel.

Shuu’s finger hesitantly touched the trigger, barely feeling the flimsy metal shift beneath his touch, and he faltered. He got out of stance, slumping slightly and lowering the gun from his shoulders. “Ya’ nervous, eh, Shuu? That’s alright! I was like that my first time, when pap showed me… Hey! Ya’ know what’d be fun? Let’s go hunt rabbits! I’ll show ya’ how its done!”

The vampire’s blue orbs flickered towards his companion, staring at him for a brief moment as if pondering his offer. Then, rather suddenly, Shuu’s eyes lit up, the blue brightening and his orbs widening slightly with excitement. His lips parted, the corners curving into a grin. “Yeah! Let’s do it!”

“Alright! Oh – and I’ll show ya’ how to track ‘em. Just pay attention…” Edgar’s words trailed off and he gently took the gun from Shuu’s hands. The vampire followed his companion deeper into the woods, eager at the thought of getting to eat rabbit meat. Of all the delicacies presented at their mansion, rabbit was one of the rarest.

As they walked slowly through the brush, Edgar explained how to track rabbits, and what kind of behavior to look out for to make them easier to catch. Proudly, the human boy even explained he could shoot them from several yards away and get a clean shot in the head, ensuring no meat was wasted.

It was almost strange to Shuu. He was a vampire and could smell the rabbits with far more precision than trying to follow their tracks. He could move silently through the grass, pounce onto an unsuspecting critter, and catch it with his bare hands. He was far more capable than his human companion. Despite that, he listened to Edgar’s every word.

Suddenly, Edgar stopped moving. He slumped to the ground, grabbing Shuu’s shirt to drag him down, as well. The boys slid onto their bellies into the cold grass. A little awkwardly, Shuu laid on the ground, staring at his companion in confusion. Edgar slid forward, the gun still within his grasp. He was focused on something, staring dead ahead, and even lifted the gun to level with his shoulders.

The pureblood’s eyes followed the gaze of the human and saw he was focused on a rabbit. It was huddled in the grass, whiskers flickering oh so slightly between the blades. From across the distance, Shuu could just barely see the little black whiskers poking out and subtly moving, as it tried to make sense of its dark surroundings. Before Edgar even had the chance to pull the trigger, the vampire knew he would miss. The little critter was already aware that they were there. That thought processed a mere two seconds before the human squeezed the trigger.

There was a loud boom that echoed throughout the woods. Shuu had heard that noise many times before from within the mansion. Now, with the gun right beside him, he not only heard the bellowing, but felt it. Not expecting such a jolt, Shuu jerked from the surprise before he felt the gun’s cry echoing, not only within the woods, but within the spirals of his ears. He cringed, clenching his jaw for a moment before the noise steadily died down and he regained himself.

“Damn! I missed!” Edgar snarled, immediately rising off the ground. Shuu wasn’t quick to follow, laying on his belly for a moment as he contemplated the force of the weapon in Edgar’s hand. It was strange to him, to know that humans had something so powerful, yet so simple. “Ya’ alright?” Edgar asked, falling onto one knee beside the vampire. “Um… Oh. Yeah,” Shuu replied, before awkwardly rising to his feet. Edgar, too, stood back up.

“Oh! Look! It’s ya’r house! …um… I think?” Edgar questioned, his eyes peering up at something. Shuu faltered for a moment, standing a bit bewildered as Edgar pounced forward, pushing brush out of the way so he could get a better look. Sure enough, as Shuu picked up the pace to keep up with his human companion, he saw the mansion, poking through the brush and gaps between the trees like a looming beast. As expected, through the darkness of the night, it was lit up quite brightly, the windows glimmering in sharp contrast to the dark exterior.

“Woooahh. I had no idea it was so huge!” Edgar exclaimed, staring on with glistening eyes, beaming with excitement. Shuu, however, looked not even a tiny bit pleased at the sight of the fortress. Rather, the pureblood stared on with disdain, loathing the sight of the place for he knew well what lingered inside.

“Ah. Shuu, I didn’t notice, but… It’s really dark so-” Edgar began, words fumbling a bit. The dark had been present for some time now; however, the vampire had hardly paid much attention to that, until Edgar mentioned it. Shuu interrupted his companion, mumbling, “I should go…” and achieving in completing the words Edgar was searching for. “Yeah. Me too. Um… We’ll definitely manage to catch a rabbit next time, yeah?” Shuu took a few steps forward, through the trees, before pausing at Edgar’s words. He didn’t have to think much on it. He knew, without a doubt, he wanted to see him again.

He turned to face the human, intending to confirm his request. Before he could look upon his companion’s face once more, something prodded roughly at his side, startling him before roughly jerking him from his dream. Edgar, the trees, and his smaller, younger self, all disappeared, fading from sight and obscuring into oblivion.

Rather suddenly, he was lying in the grass… alone, cold, and tired.

Growling, Shuu lifted into a lounging position, legs bent slightly and elbows digging into the grass. His blue orbs shifted to the spot in the grass where he had been laying. A rock was poking out between the blades, undoubtedly being what it was that jabbed him and jerked him back to consciousness. He picked up the small object and tossed it away, careless to where it ended up. The vampire went limp in the grass once more, groaning quietly as he laid flat. It didn’t take him long to sink back into a pleasant sleep; however, this time, it was a void dream… black and silent.

Peace and quiet was usually something the pureblood enjoyed greatly. For once, today was an odd exception. It was a particularly silent weekend, with Ayato out at a basketball game and Reiji going to the demon world for reasons he, thankfully, kept to himself. The other three were no where to be found, and the eldest was certainly not complaining. Lounging in the living room, Shuu felt joyfully content.

That thought did not last long…

Strangely, maybe even uncharacteristically so, the vampire was not just comfortable, relaxed, and content. He was bored. Usually, boredom was the way he enjoyed his life: uneventful and as dreadfully silent as death. Occasionally, he desired something to, not shatter, but crack that peace.

“Dull,” was the thought that kept echoing in his mind, over and over again like he expected a response. The music he enjoyed so much, he had already cycled through multiple times in the past few hours. Listening to porn had even crossed his mind. Yet, something rehearsed, recycled, so fake… It didn’t appeal, not then, anyway.

In the corner of his eye, Shuu saw the woman walk by, her arms lifted for something was in her grasp. His eyes shifted to watch her walk by. Her eyes were lowered, more focused on whatever was in her grasp to notice his lingering gaze.

He stared at her ass for a moment, though didn’t endure the entirety of her form passing. Her loose clothes hardly gave him much to ogle, assuming there was anything there worth admiring in the first place. Figures. He couldn’t even get much worth out of the prey.

His eyes fluttered shut again and he forced himself to endure the silence a little longer, until he heard the sound of running water coming from the kitchen. What followed was the gentle clattering of ceramic, and the metallic ding of silverware clashing. Had Reiji given her chores? Ah. So, that’s what it was, then. He would do something like that, wouldn’t he?

“All she ever does is wave a pen in a notebook,” Reiji had said once or twice, and the annoying memory echoed in Shuu’s mind. He had been complaining, though Shuu was hardly listening at the time, even the words were still present in his thoughts. Reiji did enjoy keeping a firm hand on his prey, though the eldest son had no care for such things. Why should he care what the human did? Writing… It was something she could do mostly in silence and didn’t bother him. He had never really thought much of it…

But, then, if it was not important, why had the thought lingered? Shuu had read many great literary works, though obviously he expected nothing of the sort from this disposable human. Was it not so much a notebook for literary purposes, but a diary? Ah. Though, perhaps not, since he had, on multiple occasions, heard her mumbling to herself when she wrote. He never soaked up her words, and only could recall the mumblings of war. Why would a human like her write about such a thing?

He shouldn’t have cared, honestly; however, blaming it on his insufferable boredom, Shuu knew he was curious. Would he get a good laugh out of her feeble attempt to be interesting? The possibility of entertainment was his motivation, and with her distracted enough to not disturb him, for now, at least… Shuu groaned quietly and lifted off the couch.

It was a strange thought, maybe even stranger than what had been plaguing him for the past few days, whilst he tried to find some peaceful sleep. This ordinary human, serving as his prey, could also be obligated to entertain him, right…? So, then… invading what lied beyond the spines of those notebooks seemed… suitable.


	13. Mortal Reminder

Shuu wasn’t a fan of this bedroom. Aside from the obvious reason - that everything was pink or white and bright and the furniture was of horrible taste - it was also an empty and heartless place. This was the temporary home of all the brides that had been sent to them. Reiji was good at making sure it was spotless, and free of any evidence that it had been previously lived in, before a new bride arrived.

He didn’t care about those girls, don’t be mistaken. But, there was something unsettling about this room. Perhaps, it was the remnants of their existence that pecked at him when he was in here. He wasn’t scared of ghosts, feeble spirits that thought they could cause torment. But, he didn’t enjoy the unease of their lingering, like some of his brothers did.

It was, perhaps, the only thing their kind shared in common: dead vampires, too, on occasion, liked to linger. View things were more obnoxious than a ghost that believed its pitiful life was worthy enough to continue existing in the afterlife. Of course, none would dare disturb him.

When Shuu pushed the door and invited himself inside, he found the room to be what he expected: it smelt like the girl, was a little stuffy, but otherwise ordinary. She had unpacked more since the last time he was in here, and had somewhat rearranged a few things.

Her school uniform was washed and ironed, hung up by a hanger that was dangling out in the open, up on a hook near her dresser. She had left her science book open on her desk, on the page where she last been reading. Various notebooks were lined up on the desk, propped up between two makeshift book ends - likely some decorations she had snatched from the study on the other side of the mansion: they were hideous, clearly things that wouldn’t be missed and of Reiji’s poor taste. Her pajamas were laid out on the bed, atop the sheets, which was somewhat made. Her hairbrush was even sitting on the edge of her desk.

Shuu was a bit amused by it. Most of their sacrifices kept this room perfectly organized and clean, at least that he could recall. Then again, this girl wasn’t from the church, was she? A non-Christian, so to speak. That seemed to explain her tastes, then.

At a glance, he could see the spines of her notebooks propped up on the desk. They were colored ones: red, blue, purple, green, orange and pink. He didn’t know if there existed any difference between those ones; however, Shuu did know that she was especially protective over the black one - because of course she would choose that color for such devious things.

The black one… which wasn’t on the desk.

Had she hidden it? She would do something so stupid, wouldn’t she? How annoying… He definitely didn’t want to have to actually look for it. But, Shuu stepped further into the room, leaving the door open behind him without much care to getting caught. In fact, it would probably be amusing if she caught him in here. He could demand she supply him with what he wanted and mock her for it… maybe she would disobey him.

It didn’t take his keen eyes long to find it. The black notebook was tucked into the small space between the bed frame and the wall. How silly. Was she honestly worried about someone finding it? Shuu leaned down and scooped it up with deft fingers and was out of the room, leaving the door open behind him.

He contemplated briefly on where to spend the remainder of his night. Outside was a thought, but he didn’t usually like to go out there unless he had recently fed, when his body was warmed and satiated. He was cold, somewhat; so, for now, he would stay inside.

Shuu settled for the library on the other side of the mansion. It was massive, with an upstairs and downstairs section. Reiji wasn’t in there tonight, leaving the room quiet and not stinking to high hell. Shuu enjoyed the large window on the upper level. It was curved at the top and indented into the wall with a seating. It was the perfect size for him to lounge on and prop his feet on the end cushion, inevitably leaving behind an indent that Reiji would bitch about later.

Perfect.

“Should I have said no to Yuma…?” Sora thought to herself as she set the wet dishes on the drying rack. She pulled the plug to let the soapy water drain. As she dried her hands, she leaned her back against the counter and dwelled heavily on it all.

Yuma’s offer… if she could even call it that… had caught her off guard. Perhaps, however, her refusal was even more surprising. It wasn’t particularly frightening, but felt… wrong. To feel such a way over the thought of another vampire indulging in her… Had she truly grown attached to Shuu? Perhaps, that was just how vampires were. “Marked” and, now, she would only ever belong to Shuu. Was that real? Or was he saying that to make her feel bad?

“…tch.” Sora set the damp towel on the edge of the counter and walked away, leaving the dishes to dry on the rack and suds in the bottom of the sink. She wasn’t thinking about what Reiji would likely to say to her, but that she needed to lay down. She needed a distraction.

Upstairs, the door to Sora’s room was open, but she didn’t immediately consider that strange. She closed the door behind herself and immediately flopped on the bed, leaving her shoed feet dangling off the edge. With the door having been left open, it was a little colder in here than usual, but she didn’t immediately move to wrap herself up in the blankets.

“Would things really be different…?” she thought to herself. She had not once considered Yuma as a way out. She didn’t look to him with eyes that pleaded for help. Maybe because he was a vampire, too. Maybe because some part of her doubted he really could save her. This situation was… her burden.

Then again… Out of worry over her own situation, Sora had briefly forgotten about what Yuma had requested of her. He wanted her to help him remember-… Remember what it was he had forgotten about Shuu? The more she thought about it, the stranger it seemed. What could she possibly do that he couldn’t? She could outright ask Shuu - no… no… she definitely couldn’t do that.

Shuu and Yuma were both vampires, but there was something subtly different about Yuma. She couldn’t really explain it. Maybe it wasn’t really there at all, and she was just imaging things. Maybe it was just the way he carried himself that gave her this impression. But, whatever it was…

“It’s like something out of a-…” Sora mumbled to herself, finishing her sentence mentally. Novel. It was like something out of a novel. Her situation? Sure, it was like a poetic horror, in a way, but… More so, whatever past and secrets were hidden between the two vampires, now that was thought provoking. With that, Sora’s thoughts drifted and she became lost in a daydream.

After some pondering, she rolled over and reached for the edge of the bed. Her fingers touched nothing but the bed frame and she froze up. She rolled over again, this time to look at the gap. Sure enough, it wasn’t there. She swung her legs over the edge of the bed and stood up. It hadn’t slipped out and fallen. No, it was gone.

“What-…?” Sora began pacing the room, wondering if she had left it somewhere else. It wasn’t on the shelf or in her backpack, though it hadn’t left this room in a few days. She was usually good about keeping track of her things-… Oh. “The door was open… He wouldn’t-…!” She left the room frantically, leaving the door open behind her.

When he opened the notebook to the first page, it was labeled “chapter 8″. Part of him was disappointed for a second. Perhaps, it would have been more interesting if it was that woman’s journal? She was a little more private than their previous sacrifices. Her emotions weren’t always as readable as the girls from the church. Though, that sometimes made her a little more boring.

Then again… reading about her complaining about her pathetic life didn’t sound interesting when he thought about it. What he expected was for this book to be wicked, to hold desires that she kept to herself. Why else would she be so secretive about it? Chapter 8… ah well, as if the rest of it mattered much at all, anyway.

As he began, it didn’t take excellent perception skills to pick up on what kind of story the woman was telling. Suzaku… a young maiden, perhaps a princess, though it wasn’t explicitly stated, quite implied, longed to be with the warrior promised to protect her. She didn’t want to fulfill the duties bestowed upon her: a royal marriage arrangement, essentially, to a stranger. She wanted the man sworn to protect her.

Tch. How typical. It was exactly the kind of material he expected from that woman: a very predictable female fantasy. Yet, one thing did come as unexpected: the perspective. It would have made sense to tell the story through the eyes of Suzaku. But, it wasn’t. It was told through the eyes of her protector.

This chapter began with a battle, one man versus five others, and every little detail of how he defeated them against all odds… and ended in a sort of internal monologue, in which he longed for the girl just the same as she did for him. After that, it skipped to chapter 10, but Shuu wasn’t really thinking about the gaps, just kept reading, occasionally grimacing at the woman’s horrendous hand writing.

Another violent chapter, and it lead Shuu to wonder what kind of woman wrote about such things. This one was less cinematic, but somehow more dramatic. Perhaps she was more masochistic than he originally perceived… or an idiot: an idiot who thought she knew what she was talking about… a typical human with aspirations beyond their understanding.

He was close to the end of chapter ten… but then her loud footsteps interrupted him. He knew it was her before she even got close to the doorway. None of his brothers’ hearts beat that loudly, and none of them carried a heavy scent like that. He looked up even before she crossed the threshold.

“Sh-…! Shuu…” she panted from the doorway, cutting off what was going to be a shout, most likely. Was she actually going to yell at him? How interesting…

She looked a little winded, and Shuu couldn’t hold back a very slight, amused grin at the sight of her. Had she really been that anxious to find him? Shuu didn’t immediately move from where he lounged, curious to see what exactly she was going to do.

“Shuu,” she stated again as she began approaching him. “Shuu, why-… Please don’t take my things. That’s private.” Her tone wasn’t very firm, unsurprisingly. She sounded somewhat pleading, maybe even a little demanding. It was clear to him she was trying to restrain herself. Her eyes were desperate, but also determined.

“That’s cheeky of you: telling me what to do,” Shuu replied, calmly. He maneuvered a bit so that he was leaning up a little more, but still lounging. This leveled their heights somewhat, but she still remained taller as she stood beside him. Even so, she still looked meek.

“Well, it’s cheeky of you to take my things,” Sora replied, a bit uneasily, as if she was testing the waters with her response. Yet, it looked like the words spilled from her lips without much thought. “You are my thing,” Shuu replied without an ounce of hesitation. As soon as those words left his mouth, he could see her expression weaken. “As such, your things are also my things.”

Shuu wasn’t smirking this time. He was dead serious, and he knew she could see that. “I get that I’m your prey, but-” she began. “Do you get that?” he interrupted, speaking over her words. She was silent for a moment, staring at him with doubt riddling those brown eyes. “Shuu…” she spoke his name, a sound somewhat exasperated, maybe even a little sad. Or was she… annoyed with him? How amusing.

“I still deserve some respect. Please-” she gritted out. “-leave my writing alone.” That definitely wasn’t the most pitiful and pathetic please he had ever heard; but, it was most certainly the fakest. Was that supposed to be polite? Was he supposed to believe that she was attempting some humility? Shuu could see it in her red cheeks and glaring eyes, could hear it in her thundering heartbeat… She was mad at him.

He wanted to taste it.

Sora reached for the notebook, as if to gingerly take it from him. She wasn’t attempting to be quick, as if to swipe it from him. She moved steadily, almost like she was asking him permission to take it back. For a moment, Shuu acted as if he was going to let her. From where he held the notebook, it forced Sora to lean over him ever so slightly. Just as soon as her fingers grazed the paper, Shuu dropped the notebook on the bench beside him and used that hand to grab her arm.

She winced at the sudden contact, all her muscles tightening in response to it. For a second, Shuu stared at her face, finally catching the glimpses of fear in her brown eyes. “I don’t like stupid prey…”

Sora cried out as he tore her away from where she stood and dragged her onto the bench, twisting her body around until her back hit the bench and she was pinned beneath him. He pressed one of his legs in between hers as he laid his body over her, one hand to balance himself above her and the other sliding around to the back of her neck, gripping hair and skin as he firmly held her in place.

Her notebook was open beneath them, more specifically trapped under Sora’s body, open on the page where Shuu had left off. How strange… to think that she would consider that worthy of challenging him. Maybe she was unaware that that’s what this was…

“Sh - agh! That hurts!” she cried, wiggling pathetically beneath him. Her hands found purchase on his forearms, squeezing so tightly that her nails dug through his shirt into his skin. She didn’t bother trying to push him off. She seemed to know better than to try that. She was staring up at him with an expression that amused him immensely.

She was a little frightened, sure. It was the kind of fear he had grown accustomed to seeing in those eyes. But, more so, she looked angry. Her jaw was tight, teeth grimacing like she was about to snarl at him. He dug his nails into her skin where he held the back of her neck, mostly to get a reaction. She hissed, squeezing her eyes shut, and unconsciously tilted her head back, as if to lessen the pain.

Her throat never had looked so appetizing.

“You’re nothing but food,” he began, chilled breaths touching her skin. Sora’s eyes remained closed, but her brow trembled slightly as he spoke. “I’ll take what I want from you… your blood… your body… insignificant things…” His tongue tasted her throat before his fangs did, a quick lap at her pulse to make it tremble harder. She flinched once, then again when his fangs met her veins. She tried to mask that sound, a whimper unlike anything he had heard from her before.

Oh…

It was only when he paused that Shuu realized how rough he had been. Had he really been that careless? Or was he more parched than he realized? Blood had gushed from the wound, running down her neck and staining the once pale white pages of her notebook. He could feel how soaked his lower lip was, and even saw a droplet fall from his chin and land on the pages.

Had she noticed? Must have. Her eyes were glistening with tears that had yet to break the surface and fall. “Tch. To cry over something so stupid…” Sora turned her head away, and it was only then that Shuu realized that his grip on her had gone slack. Her eyes were open for a moment before she squeezed them shut. Her tears glistened a trail down her cheeks and joined the blood that stained her notebook.

“Mindless things… mean nothing to me. So long… as your blood is only mine…” Shuu’s fangs found a fresh new place to pierce on the other side of her neck. She flinched silently when those fangs penetrated her skin. She was silent as he took his time savoring her, but he could feel her trembling against him, until she faded from consciousness.


End file.
